Summary: A grand jury charged the mother and stepfather of 7-year-old Nixzmary Brown with murder, detailing accusations that the mother had not only allowed a pattern of violent abuse that ended in the girl's death. That pattern approached its climax on Jan. 10 as Nixzmary's siblings were compelled to accuse her of eating yogurt without permission and breaking a computer printer. As punishment, the girl was stripped naked, beaten, dunked in cold water and thrown on the floor to lie untended for hours in a place called 'the dirty room'. The formal charges against the parents, Cesar Rodriguez and Nixzaliz Santiago, were filed as the mayor Michael R. Bloomberg defended his child welfare chief and as a second wave of mourners shuffled through a wake that drew more than 1,000 people in two days.

Summary: A grand jury charged the mother and stepfather of 7-year-old Nixzmary Brown with murder yesterday, detailing accusations that the mother had not only allowed a pattern of violent abuse that ended in the girl's death, but also participated in it. On Jan. 10 that pattern approached its climax as Nixzmary's siblings were compelled to accuse her of eating yogurt without permission and breaking a computer printer. As punishment the girl was stripped naked, beaten, dunked in cold water and thrown on the floor to lie untended for hours in a place the other children called "the dirty room." Her cries, 'Mommy,' could be heard throughout the apartment. Nixzmary's death has elicited parallels to other cases that prompted the city to overhaul its child services agency, the Administration for Children's Services, which has taken criticism for failing to remove Nixzmary from the family apartment after teachers reported signs of abuse.


Summary: The Brooklyn district attorney, Charles J. Hynes, said that as punishment the girl was stripped naked, beaten, dunked in cold water and thrown on the floor to lie untended for hours in a place the other children called "the dirty room." Her cries, 'Mommy,' could be heard throughout the apartment. Describing the night of Nixzmary's death, Mr. Hynes said Ms. Santiago had suggested that the girl had taken the yogurt and broken the printer which encouraged Mr. Rodriguez to investigate.

Summary: Charles J. Hynes, the Brooklyn district attorney said that the girl was stripped naked, beaten, dunked in cold water and thrown on the floor to lie untended for hours in a place, in the other hand the children cried saying Mommy and it was audible all around the apartment. He said Santiago did not check on her for many hours.


Summary: The formal charges against the parents, Cesar Rodriguez and Nixzaliz Santiago, were filed as the mayor Michael R. Bloomberg defended his child welfare chief and as a second wave of mourners shuffled through a wake that drew more than 1,000 people in two days. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg supported the children's services commissioner, John B. Mattingly. The mayor said that John Mattingly was the best commissioner they could possibly get for this agency, and he had the utmost confidence in him.

Summary: The formal charges against the parents, Cesar Rodriguez and Nixzaliz Santiago, both 27, of Bedford-Stuyvesant, were filed as the Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, defended his child welfare chief and as a second wave of mourners shuffled through a wake that drew more than 1,000 people in two days. The rapper Foxy Brown and Mr. Bloomberg came by who stood before the open coffin and spoke with family members, including Nixzmary's grandmother, Maria Gonzalez.


Summary: The formal charges against the parents, Cesar Rodriguez and Nixzaliz Santiago, the residents of Bedford-Stuyvesant, were filed as the mayor defended his child welfare chief and as a second wave of mourners shuffled through a wake that drew more than 1,000 people in two days. Santiago split up when she was pregnant. Santiago suggested that the girl took the yogurt and broke the printer, encouraging Mr. Rodriguez to investigate. Mr. Hynes said that Santiago did not check on her for several hours.

Summary: Cesar Rodriguez and Nixzaliz Santiago, both are 27, and from Bedford-Stuyvesant, were filed as the mayor defended his child welfare chief and as a second wave of mourners shuffled through a wake that drew more than 1,000 people in two days. He had suggested that the girl had taken the yogurt and broken the printer, also encouraging Mr. Rodriguez to investigate about the matter. Ramos speaking to the girls mother that she has to pay for what she did and Santiago of maintaining an improvised torture chamber of fetid mattresses, a soiled litter box and a wooden chair tied to a broken radiator.


Summary: Caridad Ramos, an aunt of Nixzmary, said that she had never seen the girl before.

Summary: Caridad Ramos, an aunt of Nixzmary, said Nixzmary's biological father had never seen the girl before. Ms. Ramos, speaking of the girl's mother, said that she has to pay for what she did.


John Mattingly
John B. Mattingly
Mattingly

Summary: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said that John Mattingly was the best commissioner they could possibly get for this agency. Mr. Mattingly  expected changes within the week, but said that their aim would be reform, not punishment. If they were derelict in their duty, they're not going to remain in their position. Mr. Mattingly scheduled a news conference at which he is expected to announce disciplinary actions this afternoon.

Summary: While speaking to reporters in the Bronx, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg supported the children's services commissioner, John B. Mattingly saying that he thinks Mattingly is the best commissioner they could possibly get for this agency, and he have the utmost confidence in him.


Summary: Governor Pataki appealed the leaders of the Senate and the Assembly held off on trying to hammer out a solution. Assembly members from the suburbs and upstate, who all face re-election in November, may be more concerned with passing a budget on time for a second year in a row.

Summary: Governor George E. Pataki appealed the ruling and the leaders of the Senate and the Assembly held off on trying to work out a solution. Assembly members from the suburbs and upstate, who all face re-election in November, may be more concerned with passing a budget on time for a second year in a row.


Summary: Governor Pataki appealed the ruling and the leaders of the Senate and the Assembly held off on trying to hammer out a solution. Mr. Pataki so far made no promises to deal this year with the lawsuit, filed by a group called the Campaign for Fiscal Equity, or C.F.E., more than 12 years ago.  In outlining Medicaid savings for local governments, Mr. Pataki said that New York City stood to save an estimated $775 million and urged the city to spend the money on education. Mr. Pataki argued that the latest court ruling ordering billions of dollars in state aid was flawed, since elected officials determined spending, not the courts.

Summary: Governor George E. Pataki hasn't made any promises to deal with the lawsuit this year that was filed by a group called the Campaign for Fiscal Equity, or C.F.E., more than 12 years ago. In his opening address to the Legislature, he made a brief statement saying he would provide "additional funding to high-needs schools, in New York City and across the state. Mr. Pataki has always considered education to be a top priority and has provided record amounts of additional aid to New York schools in his past budgets. Last year, education spending increased by $864 million, or 5.5 percent, from the previous year, with much of the additional money sent to districts outside New York City.


Summary: The Alliance for Quality Education, a group that has been lobbying for more education aid, is trying to rally parents to pressure the four Republican senators, who are representing the New York City districts, Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens, by arguing that the Senate is holding up plans to get the city more education aid.

Summary: The Alliance for Quality Education has been lobbying for more education aid and is trying to rally parents to pressure the four Republican senators representing New York City districts. The group will pressurize the senators, whose districts are in Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens, by arguing that the Senate is holding up plans to get the city more education aid.


Summary: Mr. Pataki has so far made no promises to deal this year with the lawsuit, filed by a group called the Campaign for Fiscal Equity, or C.F.E., more than 12 years ago.

Summary: Mr. Pataki so far made no promises to deal this year with the lawsuit, filed by a group called the Campaign for Fiscal Equity, or C.F.E. Randi Weingarten, the president of the New York City teachers' union, said that it was an outrage that C.F.E. had back-burner status in this state.


Summary: The Senate majority leader, Joseph L. Bruno, a Republican, said recently that the plaintiffs and advocates in the court case should sit down with legislators to work out a solution rather than telling them that they have to have equal opportunity for all of their young people there in the state.

Summary: Joseph L. Bruno, the Senate majority leader, said that the plaintiffs and advocates in the court case should sit down with legislators to work out a solution. Mr. Bruno also said that they didn't need the courts to tell them that they had to have equal opportunity for all of their young people there in the state. Eager to test Mr. Bruno, advocates in Albany are trying a more aggressive approach this year, challenging lawmakers on their home turf.


Summary: Pragnesh Shah, was a vice president of product innovation at Sprint Nextel, he said that the approach should be delicate because there is a fine line between adding value to a customer and intruding. Adding more to it, he said that he saw enormous potential in delivering advertising on a device that is always on and carried everywhere.

Summary: Pragnesh Shah, vice president of product innovation at Sprint Nextel, said that he saw enormous potential in delivering advertising on a device that is always on and carried everywhere, but it also should be kept in mind to be delicate in approach since there's a fine line between adding value to a customer and intruding.


Summary: Edward Snyder, a financial analyst and co-founder of Charter Equity Research, where he covers the cellular phone industry, said that unlike the computer, or a magazine or television, the phone is a piece of us. That quality, which makes mobile marketing so powerful, could also make phone ads widely disliked and force carriers to use them very cautiously.

Summary: Edward Snyder, a financial analyst and co-founder of Charter Equity Research said that in contrary of the computer, or a magazine or television, the phone is a piece of you. The quality, which makes mobile marketing so powerful, impactful could also make phone ads widely disliked and force carriers to use them very cautiously.


Summary: Other companies starting tests or full-blown campaigns with video, banner ads, or full-screen images including American Express, Microsoft, and Pepsi, among other major brands. The size of the mobile phone advertising market was only $45 million in 2005, but is expected to grow to $1.26 billion by 2009, Roger Entner, a telecommunications industry analyst with Ovum, a market research firm, said.

Summary: Other companies that are starting tests or full-blown campaigns with video, banner ads or full-screen images include American Express, Microsoft, and Pepsi, to name a few. According to Roger Entner, the size of the mobile phone advertising market in 2005 was only $45 million, but by 2009 it is expected to grow to $1.26 billion.


Summary: ESPN, the sports network, which offers a service that sends scores, text stories, and video highlights to cellphones, plans to start running short video clips later this year from advertisers like Visa USA, Nike, and Hilton Hotels. Visa has also signed a contract with ESPN to have three-second animated images run before phone users receive ESPN sports updates.

Summary: ESPN, the sports network, offers a service like sends scores, text stories and video highlights to cellphones, and plans to start running short video clips to promote later this year from advertisers like Visa USA, Nike and Hilton Hotels. The credit card company has also signed a contract with ESPN for having three-second animated images run before phone users receive ESPN sports updates.


Summary: Thomas J. Burgess, the chief executive of Third Screen, said mobile ad budgets had risen from an average of $20,000 for a campaign a year ago to $150,000 to $250,000 today. He said the company had just signed its largest deal ever, a $1.6 million contract for a one-year campaign with an entertainment industry advertiser that he declined to name. Mr. Burgess attributes the higher response rate to a greater ability to aim ads at particular consumers based on factors like time of day and the kind of handset they are using.

Summary: The chief executive of Third Screen, Thomas J. Burgess, said his customers that mobile ad budgets had risen from an average of $20,000 for a campaign a year ago to $150,000 to $250,000 today. He further said that the company had just signed its largest deal, that is a $1.6 million contract for a one-year campaign with an entertainment industry advertiser that he declined to name. One reason according to him, for growing interest in cellphone ads is the relatively high rate at which customers click on banner ads on mobile screens.


Summary: AdSense quickly gained a following among bigger companies with an online presence, like the Weather Channel, as a way to supplement their advertising deals and populate more obscure pages with paid ads.

Summary: AdSense quickly gained a following among bigger companies with an online presence, for example the Weather Channel, as a way to supplement their advertising deals and gain popularity more obscure pages with paid ads.


Summary: AdSense is one of Google's most compelling long-term bets, said Charlene Li, an online media analyst with Forrester Research. She has called Google the one-trick pony for a long time, and for the most part, they still are. She also said that before, if she wanted to put advertising on her site, she'd have to hire ad salespeople, process orders.

Summary: Charlene Li, who was an online media analyst with Forrester Research said that AdSense quickly gained a following among bigger companies with an online presence which makes AdSense one of Google's most compelling long-term bets. She has called Google the one-trick pony for a long time. Before she wanted to put advertising on her site, she would has to hire ad salesperson, process orders, and there no other way left for her, said Li.


Summary: Hundreds of thousands of people have started blogs, forums, or other informational sites and are getting paid for posting ads on Google's behalf. Google's advertising network sales, which come largely from its AdSense advertisers, reached $675 million in the third quarter of 2005. Google.com and the company's foreign search sites contribute more to Google's bottom line than AdSense. For AdSense advertisers, some of the more significant improvements began last June, when Google started allowing marketers to select vast groups of sites on which to advertise. Late last year, Google also gave advertisers the ability to display graphical ads on sites within the AdSense network of publishers, as well as the ability to pay different (typically lower) prices for AdSense ads than those available on Google.com.

Summary: Goodle developed a platform named AdSense, which is also run by Google itself. Google does not advertise on the Digital Point site. Instead of that, through Google AdSense program, it places ads on the forum, similar to the ads that appear next to search results on Google.com site. After that, Google scans the information on the forum's pages, then posts related ads.


Summary: AdSense is a program developed and run by Google whose advertisers delivers the large amount of advertising network sales amount, reached $675 million in the third quarter of 2005, the last period for which Google reported results. AdSense generates less revenue than Google's primary revenue engine, which sold about $885 million worth of ads in the third quarter of 2005, and a 115 percent increase from the previous year. Although, millions of small sites have not yet signed up for Google AdSense, which was introduced in 2002.

Summary: Google places ads similar to the ads that appear next to search results on Google.com. on the forum through its AdSense program. Google's advertising network sales, which come largely from its AdSense advertisers, reached $675 million in the third quarter of 2005, the last period for which Google reported results. AdSense quickly gained a following among bigger companies with an online presence, like the Weather Channel, as a way to supplement their advertising deals and populate more obscure pages with paid ads.


Summary: The owner and chief technology officer of Digital Point, Shawn D. Hogan, said that Google pays Digital Point about $10,000 a month, depending on how many people view or click on those ads. He said that he started the revenue-sharing approach "as kind of a marketing gimmick" in 2004, but everyone seemed to think it was a cool idea as he saw a lot of other sites doing the same thing maybe six months later. He also said that it was difficult to say whether the financial incentives had made the forum's participants more active, because its growth rate was about the same before and after it started paying users.

Summary: Google pays Digital Point about $10,000 a month, depending on how many people view or click on those ads, said Shawn D. Hogan, the owner, and chief technology officer of Digital Point. Mr. Hogan said he started the revenue-sharing approach in 2004. Mr. Hogan said it was difficult to say whether the financial incentives had made the forum's participants more active because its growth rate was about the same before and after it started paying users.


Summary: Alan Stern who was the mission's principal investigator and team leader of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado said that the payoff at the end of the mission will be well worth the wait. He further added that in a real sense the capstone of the initial missions to explore the planets. Dr. Stern said that Pluto, its moons and that part of the solar system are so mysteries that New Horizons will rewrite it all in the textbooks.

Summary: Dr. Stern said that this was in a real sense the capstone of the initial missions to explore the planets. Dr. Stern said that Pluto, its moons and this part of the solar system are such mysteries that New Horizons would rewrite all of the textbooks. Pluto, discovered in 1930 by the astronomer Clyde Tombaugh, turns out to be the first known example of a new class of planetary bodies called ice dwarfs. Dr. Stern dismisses recent debate over whether Pluto is really a planet, since it and its ilk are so different from the solar system's two other major classes of planets, the four rocky inner worlds like Earth and Mercury, and the four giant, gaseous outer planets like Jupiter and Saturn.


Summary: A powerful Lockheed Martin Atlas 5 rocket is scheduled to send a spacecraft called New Horizons on a journey to the dim outer reaches of the Sun's realm for the first close-up look at Pluto. Once New Horizons completes its studies of the Pluto system, it will be redirected toward one or two other Kuiper Belt objects that will be selected later. As the mission will operate too far out to use solar power, New Horizons will draw its power from a plutonium-fueled thermo-electric generator that produces 200 watts of electricity.

Summary: On Tuesday, a powerful Lockheed Martin Atlas 5 rocket is scheduled to send a spacecraft called New Horizons on a journey to the dim outer reaches of the Sun's realm for the first close-up look at Pluto. Pluto, discovered in 1930 by the astronomer Clyde Tombaugh, turns out to be the first known example of a new class of planetary bodies called ice dwarfs, Dr. Stern said New Horizons will rewrite all of the textbooks regarding the mysteries surrounding Pluto. Pluto-like objects are more typical in our solar system than the nearby planets. Once New Horizons completes its studies of the Pluto system, it will be redirected toward one or two other Kuiper Belt objects that will be selected later.


Summary: Mehmet Ali Agca was released from a Turkish prison and he has been said to visit the Istanbul police for his daily check-ins, but he didn't obey that order. He was the man who tried to kill John Paul II in 1981. He was 48, and was told to report daily to the station in Istanbul until doctors determined whether he was fit to fulfill mandatory military services or not. He spent 19 years in Italian jails for his attempt on John Paul's life.

Summary: Mehmet Ali Agca, 48, the man who tried to assassinate John Paul II in 1981, has not made required daily check-ins with the Istanbul police since his release from a Turkish prison on Thursday. In 1999, Mr. Agca received a Vatican-approved pardon, and in 2000, he was extradited to Turkey, where he was convicted in absentia for the killing of a respected journalist, Abdi Ipekci, in 1979. He was arrested after that killing, but escaped the prison before he could be tried. In the late 1970s, he was associated with Turkish ultranationalist groups and the Turkish criminal underworld. These links have prompted speculation that his release this week might have been arranged by an illegal network with strong nationalist affiliations.


Summary: In 1999, Mr. Agca received a Vatican-approved pardon, and in 2000, he was extradited to Turkey, where he had been convicted in absentia for the 1979 killing of a respected journalist, Abdi Ipekci. Mr. Ipekci wrote columns attacking far-right groups and suggesting that drug traffickers were working with high-ranking security officers before he was killed. Baskin Oran, a political science professor said that Mr. Agca was helped in escaping a fortresslike military prison and now made his release possible.

Summary: In 1999, Mr. Agca was extradited to Turkey, where he had been convicted in absentia for the 1979 killing of a respected journalist, Abdi Ipekci. Before his death, Mr. Ipekci wrote columns attacking far-right groups and suggesting that drug traffickers were working with high-ranking security officers. Baskin Oran, a political science professor at Ankara University, said that they had helped Mr. Agca escape from a fortress like military prison, then he was jailed for murdering Ipekci and now made his release possible.


Summary: In 1981,John Paul II was tried to be killed by Mehmet Ali Agca, has not made required daily check-ins with the Istanbul police since his release from a Turkish prison. Mr. Agca spent 19 years in Italian jails for his attempt on John Paul's life.

Summary: Mehmet Ali Agca, who spent 19 years in Italian jails for trying to assassinate John Paul II in 1981, has not made required daily check-ins with the Istanbul police since his release from a Turkish prison on Thursday.


Summary: Mustafa Demirbag, Mr. Agca's lawyer, told the Anatolia news agency on Saturday that he did not believe Mr. Agca had to report to the police station because he had applied to authorities to pay for his military term some six or seven years ago.

Summary: Mustafa Demirbag is the lawyer of Mr. Mehmet Ali Agca, told the Anatolia news agency that he did not believe Mr. Agca had to report to the police station, because he had applied years ago to pay in place of military service. He further said that Mr. Agca has applied to authorities for paying his military term of some six or seven years ago.


Summary: The executives and unsecured creditors of UAL Corporation, who is the parent of United Airlines, agreed to deal with them in which 400 executives stand to share an astonishing 10 million shares, or 8 percent of the total that the company expects to issue upon its emergence from bankruptcy. After announcing the UAL deal, it was proved as evidence that the company's managers were exercising their self-control. According to court filings, after the company done with bankruptcy, annual salaries of top eight executives of UAL was, for example, will total $3.5 million.

Summary: Last Thursday, unsecured creditors and executives at the UAL Corporation agreed to a deal in which 400 executives stand to share an astonishing 10 million shares, or 8 percent of the total that the company expects to issue upon its emergence from bankruptcy. When the UAL deal was announced, it was evident that the company's managers were exercising restraint. The court overseeing the UAL bankruptcy is expected to rule on the compensation plan on Tuesday.


Summary: The court filings show Towers Perrin, the compensation consultant employed by the company, concluding that a reasonable stake of new shares to be received by executives ranged from 3.5 percent to 7.5 percent of stock issued. According to Jean Medina, Towers Perrin noted in another report it filed with the court that the plan, which has since been reduced, was both reasonable and appropriate for United's situation.

Summary: Towers Perrin concluded that a reasonable stake of new shares to be received by executives ranged from 3.5 percent to 7.5 percent of stock issued. Towers Perrin also noted in another report it filed with the court that the plan, which had since been reduced, was both reasonable and appropriate for United's situation. Mr. Foley said he was also surprised that Towers Perrin apparently advised both management and the board, and wondered if another consultant would have recommended the same pay package to the board.


Summary: Brian Foley, an executive pay expert in White Plains, finds the plan's stock compensation component much remarkable. He also noted that the 8 percent stake to be received by UAL executives exceeds what was described as "reasonable" by Towers Perrin in court filings last fall.  He said that the basic concern here is that the players don't seem to discipline themselves as much as they should and the external forces aren't executing any braking power and the courts don't seem to hold people as accountable as they should. He was also surprised that Towers Perrin apparently advised both management and the board, and wondered if another consultant would have recommended the same pay package to the board.

Summary: Mr. Brian Foley,  an executive pay expert in White Plains, said  that the heavy emphasis on the restricted shares under the plan increased the pay package's value. Mr. Foley also noted that the 8 percent stake to be received by UAL executives exceeds what was described as ''reasonable'' by Towers Perrin. And Foley also added that the basic concern there was that the players didn't seem to discipline themselves as much as they should and the external forces weren't executing any braking power.


Summary: Last Thursday, unsecured creditors and executives at the UAL Corporation, parent of United Airlines, agreed to a deal in which 400 executives stand to share an astonishing 10 million shares, or 8 percent of the total that the company expects to issue upon its emergence from bankruptcy. According to Jean Medina, Towers Perrin noted in another report it filed with the court that the plan, which has since been reduced, was both reasonable and appropriate for United's situation. She said in a statement that they believe, and the official committee of unsecured creditors, which represents our creditors and unions, agreed, that this program was appropriate to enable United to attract and retain top performers. It's in everyone's interests for management to have this component of management compensation tied to the future performance of United's stock price.

Summary: The unsecured creditors and executives at the UAL Corporation, who is the parent of United Airlines, agreed to deal with them where 400 executives stand to share an astonishing 10 million shares, or 8 percent of the total that the company expects to issue upon its emergence from bankruptcy. A UAL spokeswoman, Towers Perrin noted that the plan, which has been reduced, was both reasonable and appropriate for United's situation. She asked that what's the other half a percent among their friends, this was according to Jean Medina.


Summary: The governer's plan to use $160 million, held by the fledgling New York Charitable Asset Foundation, has the support of the state's other top Republican, Joseph L. Bruno. Because of the legal battle over the roughly $5 billion in proceeds from the conversion, the foundation has yet to use any of its share of the funds. A joint press release from Mr. Pataki and Mr. Bruno last month explained that because the windfall profits from the conversion of Empire, which is now part of WellPoint, were higher than expected, the foundation's 5 percent share exceeded what had been envisioned. The purpose of this foundation is to extend coverage and access to poor people. John McArdle, a spokesman for Mr. Bruno, said several senators had been looking at biomedical research proposals when the Pataki administration came to them with the idea of using money from the foundation.

Summary: And his plan to use that amount, $160 million, held by the fledgling New York Charitable Asset Foundation, has the support of the state's other top Republican, Joseph L. Bruno, the majority leader in the State Senate. Because of the legal battle over the roughly $5 billion in proceeds from the conversion, the foundation has yet to use any of its share of the funds.


Summary: In the papers of Robert Moses, there was more than paper: there were samples of fabric for park police uniforms. There was also mold. After an inspection trip to a storage area near the 79th Street Boat Basin where Moses' papers had been stashed, she ordered 35 cubic feet of them fumigated.


Summary: Jared Paul Stern has been in New York newspapers for 12 years, most of them working for Richard Johnson. Mr. Stern uses some of Mr. Johnson's relationships as examples of what he called "the right approach, because it's a pretty complicated business." There is nothing illegal, or even particularly rare, about the relationships that Mr. Stern brings up; the muddying of the line between gossip and public relations, subject and comrade, is a longtime tradition in various corners of the industry. Mr. Stern's statements on the recordings suggest he believed that forming a relationship with journalists is smart business for a public figure. There is a big difference between muddying journalistic lines and asking for cash in return for favorable coverage, or no coverage at all.

Summary: Jared Paul Stern has been in New York newspapers for 12 years, most of them working for Richard Johnson, the editor of the Page Six gossip column at The New York Post. Mr. Stern has been accused of trying to shake down a billionaire for $220,000. In recordings made by the billionaire, Ronald W. Burkle, Mr. Stern uses some of Mr. Johnson's relationships as examples. There is nothing illegal about the relationships that Mr. Stern brings up the muddying of the line between gossip and public relations, subject, and comrade is a longtime tradition in various corners of the industry. In a statement, Mr. Tacopina who is Mr. Stern's lawyer said has been the victim of a fallacious smear campaign, expects him to be fully exonerated and reinstated. Mr. Burkle, claims that Mr. Stern offered to influence coverage of him in the column in exchange for $220,000.


Summary: Rafael Hui, the chief secretary and second-ranking official here, said that he would lead a new committee to study how Hong Kong might still find a way to build a cultural district on the government's favored location in West Kowloon. Mr. Hui said at a news conference that the government was withdrawing its request for proposals after developers declined to submit bids meeting the government's new requirements. Mr. Hui, using a traditional Chinese saying that it is sometimes necessary during a journey to repack and remount a horse, insisted that he had not given up on the project and that his new committee would report back in September.

Summary: Rafael Hui, the chief secretary and second-ranking official here, said that he would lead a new committee to study how Hong Kong might still find a way to build a cultural district on the government's favored location in West Kowloon, a 104-acre peninsula of reclaimed land in the heart of Hong Kong's famous harbor. Mr. Hui said at a news conference that the government was withdrawing its request for proposals after developers declined to submit bids meeting the government's new requirements. Mr. Hui, using a traditional Chinese saying that it is sometimes necessary during a journey to repack and remount a horse, insisted that he had not given up on the project and that his new committee would report back in September.


Summary: His new wife, Sessa von Richthofen, was hired as an administrative assistant to Christine Taylor, who has shown up quite a bit this year in Page Six as a spokeswoman explaining and clarifying the actions of her boss, Ronald O. Perelman, the chairman of Revlon, who is divorcing the actress Ellen Barkin. Ms. von Richthofen, whom Mr. Johnson married on Saturday, left the position about a month ago.

Summary: Sessa von Richthofen, was married to Mr. Johnson and was hired as an administrative assistant to Christine Taylor, who has shown up quite a bit this year in Page Six as a spokeswoman explaining and clarifying the actions of her boss, Ronald O. Perelman, the chairman of Revlon, who is divorcing the actress Ellen Barkin.


Summary: On the recordings, while telling Mr. Burkle how the gossip business works, Mr. Stern referred to Harvey Weinstein's relationship with the column. Paula Froelich, one of the two staff gossip reporters who work for Mr. Johnson, had a book published by Miramax Books when Mr. Weinstein was running the company. Mr. Rubenstein said that Miramax had won rights to the book at auction and that Ms. Froelich does not write any items on Mr. Weinstein.

Summary: Mr. Weinstein, a co-founder of Miramax Films, Miramax approached Mr. Johnson to talk about making an American version of ''Jet Set,'' a French movie about socialites, though no deal was ever made.  Mr. Weinstein was known for his harsh treatment. On the recordings, while telling Mr. Burkle how the gossip business works, Mr. Stern referred to Harvey Weinstein's relationship with the column.


Summary: The South Bank's temporary loss appears to be the Barbican Center's gain. The Barbican, which opened 24 years ago, has slowly built its standing. Mr. Lynch said pointing to the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam and the Vienna and Berlin philharmonics said that they're the only 2,000-seat hall in London that can bring in major international orchestras, which, though often booked at Royal Festival Hall, are at the Barbican this season. Graham Sheffield, the Barbican's artistic director, disputed that characterization, saying that those orchestras would have come to the Barbican anyway. But he acknowledged that the lack of competition allowed the Barbican to have its pick in programming a Shostakovich cycle this season, during the composer's centenary.

Summary: The South Bank's temporary loss appears to be the Barbican Center's gain. The Barbican, which opened 24 years ago, has slowly built its standing. Graham Sheffield, the Barbican's artistic director, disputed that characterization, saying that those orchestras would have come to the Barbican anyway.


Philharmonic
New York Philharmonic
London Philharmonic

Summary: The uncertainty over a completion date has also caused foreign orchestras to cancel visits, including the New York Philharmonic. How London's music world deals with the closing could provide a road map for what will happen in New York when Avery Fisher Hall undergoes renovation, forcing the temporary displacement of the New York Philharmonic. But the Philharmonic is already trying to figure out what to do.


Mr. Johnson
Richard Johnson
Richard
Nadine Johnson
Johnson

Summary: While Mr. Richard Johnson, the editor of the Page Six gossip column at The New York Post, has never been accused of anything like trying to shake down a billionaire for $220,000, as Mr. Stern is now, the journalistic example that he set for his protégé is one in which writers and the people they write about intersect more than just in print. In two decades of running the page, Mr. Johnson has built personal and quasi-business relationships with those he has written about; some of them have become sources of gossip for the column. Mr. Johnson has been flown first class and put up free of charge in luxury hotels by companies, all while covering events for the column; he is also a regular columnist for a magazine whose publisher shows up repeatedly in Page Six and whose publishing company is often mentioned.

Summary: Jared Paul Stern has been in New York newspapers for 12 years, most of them working for Richard Johnson, the editor of the Page Six gossip column at The New York Post. In two decades of running the page, Mr. Johnson has built personal and quasi-business relationships with those he has written about; some of them have become sources of gossip for the column. Mr. Johnson has been flown first class and put up free of charge in luxury hotels by companies, all while covering events for the column; he is also a regular columnist for a magazine whose publisher shows up repeatedly in Page Six and whose publishing company is often mentioned. In addition to Page Six, Mr. Johnson writes a column for Gotham, a free magazine and the flagship publication for Niche Media, a company owned by Jason Binn.


Summary: The Pentagon published a new long-range strategy paper on Friday that calls for doubling spending on unmanned aircraft in the next several years, building Navy ships designed to operate closer to shore and training new Special Operations units to track unconventional weapons. Overall, the plan, which eliminates no major existing weapon systems, would not substantially reorient the Pentagon's spending priorities. By building vessels so the Navy can better operate close to shore and along rivers, the Pentagon hopes to be able to track terrorist groups and insurgents better in coastal areas.


Summary: The job hunter, Leonora Gidlund, with her master's degree, was frustrated that she had not landed anything. Twenty-one years later, and 15 months after becoming director of the archives, she has been named the recipient of this year's Sloan Public Service Awards. She was cited for turning the archives into what the Fund for the City of New York called "a well-known, accessible symbol of public service excellence." Historians who use the archives for their research credit her with striking a balance between their scholarly demands and the needs of amateur researchers who are trying at genealogy. She has been able to mix the skills of preservation and access in a way that very few people have figured out. She began work on a master's degree at Georgia State University, where she developed a finding aid, a detailed index to a collection, for the papers of the lyricist Johnny Mercer.

Summary: Director of the archives, Mrs. Leonora Gidlund has been named the recipient of this year's Sloan Public Service Awards. She was cited for turning the archives into what the Fund for the City of New York called "a well-known, accessible symbol of public service excellence." Historians who use the archives for their research credit her with striking a balance between their scholarly demands and the needs of amateur researchers who are trying their hand at genealogy. She has been able to mix the skills of preservation and access in a way that very few people have figured out. She began work on a master's degree at Georgia State University, where she developed a finding aid, a detailed index to a collection, for the papers of Johnny Mercer. It was the first finding aid, she said, that the history department had accepted as a master's thesis.


Summary: The job hunter, Leonora Gidlund, went to the nearest pay phone and dialed Gene. Before long Gene -- Eugene J. Bockman, the commissioner of the city's Department of Records and Information Services, hired her as an archivist in the Municipal Archives.

Summary: Eugene J. Bockman, the commissioner of the city's Department of Records and Information Services hired Leonora Gidlund as an archivist in the Municipal Archives.  She said she had no idea who Gene was. Gene told her to send in her résumé, but she had to call the secretary back because she did know his last name or his title.


Summary: Mariam Marjan Saleh, a professor of Islamic law at Al Quds University in Jerusalem and a newly elected Hamas legislator said that their principles are known, and they are willing to discuss them with anybody but people are free to decide whether they want to accept it or not. She said, in fact, that Hamas would prove finally that Islam and democracy are not opposing ideas.

Summary: Mariam Marjan Saleh, a professor of Islamic law at Al Quds University in Jerusalem said ''Our principles are known, and we are willing to discuss them with anybody,''  and she was a newly elected Hamas legislator. Further she continues ''But people are free to decide whether they want to accept it or not.'' She said, in fact, that Hamas would prove finally that Islam and democracy are not opposing ideas.


Summary: According to the officials, the Republican-controlled State Senate began printing bills last night that calls for more education spending than Gov. George E. Pataki proposed in his budget plan, but far less than New York City officials say they are owed by a court order. Governor Pataki appealed the case. In his budget proposal, the governor called for increasing education spending across the state next year by $634 million.

Summary: George E. Pataki proposed in his budget plan, but far less than New York City officials say they are owed by a court order, officials said. He appealed the case. In his budget proposal, the governor called for increasing education spending across the state next year by $634 million.


Senate Banking Committee
Senate
Banking Committee

Summary: Last week, the Senate Banking Committee unanimously adopted one measure that would make the process more rigorous and transparent. After the April recess, the House is expected to consider a similar bill. Senator Richard C. Shelby, the Alabama Republican who heads the Banking Committee, sponsored what has emerged as the central Senate bill on the subject.

Summary: Last week, the Senate Banking Committee unanimously adopted one measure that would make the process more rigorous and transparent. After the April recess, the House is expected to consider a similar bill. Senator Richard C. Shelby sponsored what has emerged as the central Senate bill on the subject. He said that the Dubai deal showed that nobody knew anything.


Summary: In recordings made by the billionaire, Ronald W. Burkle, Mr. Stern uses some of Mr. Johnson's relationships as examples of what he called the right approach because it's a pretty complicated business. There is nothing illegal, or even particularly rare, about the relationships that Mr. Stern brings up. Mr. Burkle, a supermarket magnate and Democratic fund-raiser whose name was mentioned in Page Six four times in the past year, claims that Mr. Stern offered to influence coverage of him in the column in exchange for $220,000.

Summary: Mr. Burkle, a supermarket magnate and Democratic fund-raiser whose name was mentioned in Page Six four times in the past year, claims that Mr. Stern offered to influence coverage of him in the column in exchange for $220,000. Mr. Stern said that he was asking Mr. Burkle for an investment in his clothing line, Skull & Bones.


Summary: It is a well-known element of the glossy magazine business and was even a kind of expectation for a society columnist in the days of ''Sweet Smell of Success.'' Yesterday, as the story again dominated the front page of the Post's chief rival, The Daily News, Mr. Stern got a new lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, who replaced Edward Hayes.


Summary: The homeland security secretary, Michael Chertoff, accepting the responsibility for the performance of the entire department, good and bad, told local and state disaster officials at a conference in Alexandria, Va. that he plans to fix what went wrong. The changes will include a cadre of new disaster response workers who will be available to respond quickly to any natural disaster or terrorist attack, which could number as many as 1,500, a department official said. Mr. Chertoff along with R. David Paulison and Frances Fragos Townsend also promised to revise rules on debris removal and temporary housing, so local and state governments could move faster to clean up after a disaster and house the homeless. They also said they would improve communications systems and the registration process for disaster victims, so there would be fewer delays in getting help for those most in need.

Summary: The homeland security secretary, Michael Chertoff, said that he is accountable and he accepts responsibility for the performance of the entire department, good and bad. He also has the responsibility to fix what went wrong. The changes will include a cadre of new disaster response workers who will be available to respond quickly to any natural disaster or terrorist attack, Mr. Chertoff said, which could number as many as 1,500 as per a department official. Mr. Chertoff, R. David Paulison and Frances Fragos Townsend also promised to revise rules on debris removal and temporary housing, so local and state governments could move faster to clean up after a disaster and house the homeless. Them, repeating plans Mr. Chertoff outlined last year, also said they would improve communications systems and the registration process for disaster victims, so there would be fewer delays in getting help for those most in need.


Summary: Ms. Nicol Andrews, a FEMA spokesman,  said that if sites for those mobile homes are not approved in Louisiana, it is possible they will never be used for hurricane relief. In her opinion, relaxing the flood-plain regulation was not the answer since there are areas throughout Louisiana and the southeastern United States that aren't in a flood plain.

Summary: Nicol Andrews, a FEMA spokesman, said that if sites for those mobile homes are not approved in Louisiana, it is possible they will never be used for hurricane relief. She also said that relaxing the flood-plain regulation was not the answer as there are areas throughout Louisiana and the southeastern United States that aren't in a flood plain.


Summary: Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, said that these trailers are going to take the place of those very expensive toilet seats that he remembers from Pentagon days.


Summary: Though about 55,000 Louisiana families are still waiting for a manufactured housing unit, the mobile homes may never be used because FEMA regulations prohibit them from being installed in flood-prone coastal areas. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, FEMA ordered far too many mobile homes and too few travel trailers, which are smaller, less expensive and more portable, and can be placed on lots in the disaster zone. The report on the mobile homes, as well as widespread fraud in FEMA's emergency assistance to hurricane victims, came as the federal government's top three domestic security and disaster relief officials vowed to fix flaws in the nation's emergency response programs. FEMA officials said that they had installed both trailers and mobile homes after previous disasters and that they had no reason to believe that Hurricane Katrina would be different.

Summary: Though about 55,000 Louisiana families are still waiting for a manufactured housing unit, the mobile homes may never be used because FEMA regulations prohibit them from being installed in flood-prone coastal areas, federal officials said. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, FEMA ordered far too many mobile homes and too few travel trailers. The report on the mobile homes, as well as widespread fraud in FEMA's emergency assistance to hurricane victims, came as the federal government's top three domestic security and disaster relief officials vowed to fix flaws in the nation's emergency response programs. FEMA officials said that they had installed both trailers and mobile homes after previous disasters and that they had no reason to believe that Hurricane Katrina would be different. Another alternative would involve having the federal government pay Louisiana for FEMAvilles with hundreds of mobile homes were created in rural or suburban areas.


Summary: Members of a Senate committee investigating the response to Hurricane Katrina called the mobile home episode an appalling example of government stumbling. Back in Washington, members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee were learning of problems still unfolding. Richard L. Skinner, inspector general at the Homeland Security Department, told the Senate panel, many of the mobile homes might have to be sold as surplus, stored for some future disaster use, or given to another federal agency.


Summary: As it stands, Richard L. Skinner, inspector general at the Homeland Security Department, told the Senate panel, many of the mobile homes might have to be sold as surplus, stored for some future disaster use, or given to another federal agency. When asked what kind of return could be expected if they're sold as surplus property, he responded that it's certainly not going to be very high, given the way they were being stored at a spot where some are sinking into the mud.

Summary: Richard L. Skinner, inspector general at the Homeland Security Department, told the Senate panel that many mobile homes might have to be sold as surplus, stored for some future disaster use, or given to another federal agency. Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, asked Mr. Skinner that if they're sold as surplus property, what kind of return can you expected. His answer infuriated the panel members. He responded that it was not going to be very high, given the way they were being stored at a spot where some are sinking into the mud.


Summary: Mr. Chertoff and R. David Paulison, the acting FEMA director, and Frances Fragos Townsend, President Bush's domestic security adviser, also promised to revise rules on debris removal and temporary housing, so local and state governments could move faster to clean up after a disaster and house the homeless. Mr. Chertoff, Mr. Paulison, and Ms. Townsend, repeating plans Mr. Chertoff outlined last year, also said they would improve communications systems and the registration process for disaster victims, so there would be fewer delays in getting help for those most in need. Mr. Paulison said that Hurricane Katrina is a defining moment in the history of emergency management. He also said the agency was moving to order 10,000 more of the units, which cost about $10,000 each, while mobile homes cost on average $34,000.

Summary: R. David Paulison, the acting FEMA director, and Frances Fragos Townsend, President Bush's domestic security adviser, also promised to revise rules on debris removal and temporary housing, so local and state governments could move faster to clean up after a disaster and house the homeless. Mr. Paulison said at a conference, that Hurricane Katrina was a defining moment n the history of emergency management. Mr. Paulison said the agency was moving to order 10,000 more of the units, which cost about $10,000 each, while mobile homes cost on average $34,000.


Summary: Only about 2,700 of the 25,000 mobile homes ordered at a cost of $850 million have been installed, and at least 10,000 are sitting in Hope, Ark., according to documents and statements from Federal Emergency Management Agency officials. Though about 55,000 Louisiana families are still waiting for a manufactured housing unit, the mobile homes may never be used because FEMA regulations prohibit them from being installed in flood-prone coastal areas, federal officials said. It was suggested that FEMA relax the regulation to allow mobile homes near the coast.

Summary: About 55,000 Louisiana families are still waiting for a manufactured housing unit, the mobile homes may never be used because FEMA regulations prohibit them from being installed in flood-prone coastal areas, federal officials said. The report on the mobile homes, as well as widespread fraud in FEMA's emergency assistance to hurricane victims, came as the federal government's top three domestic security and disaster relief officials vowed to fix flaws in the nation's emergency response programs. FEMA officials said that they had installed both trailers and mobile homes after previous disasters and that they had no reason to believe that Hurricane Katrina would be different. They also suggested that FEMA relax the regulation to allow the mobile homes near the coast.


Summary: In San Jose, where the average house price increased 21 percent last year, Sathish Pottavathini, a programmer at eBay, said he was taking his time with the search for a new home and trying to find a good deal. Mr. Pottavathini, who is 32, said that he doesn't want to rush into things especially in this kind of situation where one hears about a slowing down everywhere. He and his wife, Madhuri, spend $1,200 a month renting an 800-square-foot two-bedroom apartment, where they live with their 21/2-year-old daughter, Siri.  He also said that if he waits, he might get a better place since buyers who had shown similar patience in the early 1990s were rewarded. He is giving his San Jose search four months. After that, he plans to take a break and wait until his daughter is a bit older and his wife returns to work.

Summary: Sathish Pottavathini, a programmer at eBay, said he was taking his time with the search for a new home and trying to find a good deal in the San Jose, Calif. ''I don't want to rush into things especially in this kind of situation,'' Mr. Pottavathini, who is 32, said, ''where you hear about a slowing down everywhere.'' He and his wife, Madhuri. Mr. Pottavathini said, ''If I wait, I might get a better place.'' Buyers who showed similar patience in the early 1990's were rewarded.


Asbury Park City Council
Asbury Park
City Council

Summary: The Asbury Park City Council, under pressure to show more progress on redeveloping 56 acres on the blighted oceanfront, has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. Deputy Mayor James Bruno, a member of the five-member City Council, said that the new deadline was established because they were sick of looking at those buildings down there, referring to the Beaux Arts Convention Hall and the other structures that the redeveloper bought from the city. For the last several years, individuals have invested heavily in the hopes of Asbury Park's rebirth and bought up sagging properties in and around the oceanfront redevelopment area at bargain prices in hopes of a future bonanza.

Summary: The Asbury Park City Council, under pressure to show more progress on redeveloping 56 acres on the blighted oceanfront, has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. The attempt to push things along comes some four years after the city entered into the agreement with Asbury Partners, the developer.


Summary: The Asbury Park City Council has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. The attempt to push things along comes some four years after the city entered into the agreement with Asbury Partners, the developer. Construction is underway on three condominium projects by major developers brought in by Asbury Partners within the redevelopment area. Since 2001, when Asbury Partners offered to take the reins of the redevelopment effort, there have been so many delays and other problems. This week, council members voted to give Asbury Partners until March 30 to amend their agreement with the city to create clear timetables for the redevelopment of the boardwalk buildings, produce a concept plan for their marketing, show clearer proof of financial ability, and set sanctions for failure to comply with the timetable.

Summary: The Asbury Park City Council, under pressure to show more progress on redeveloping 56 acres on the blighted oceanfront, has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. Since 2001, when Asbury Partners, a Lakewood-based real estate and development company, offered to take the reins of the redevelopment effort, there have been so many delays and other problems that they have spent only $5.5 million of an estimated $60 million in preparation work on the infrastructure of the area, city officials said. Asbury Partners have been given until March 30 to amend their agreement with the city to create clear timetables for the redevelopment of the boardwalk buildings, produce a concept plan for their marketing, showing clearer proof of financial ability, and set sanctions for failure to comply with the timetable.


Summary: In Buxton, Me., a suburb of Portland, Geof and Cheri Toner put their three-bedroom Cape Cod-style house on the market for $379,900 late last year, shortly before moving to Raleigh, N.C., for Mr. Toner's job. They have received only one offer, for $350,000, which they rejected, and recently reduced the price to $374,900.

Summary: Mr. Cheri Toner who is 48, the regional sales manager of a video equipment maker. He said he assumed that more buyers would look at the property as the weather warmed up. In Buxton, Me., a suburb of Portland, Geof and Cheri Toner put their three-bedroom Cape Cod-style house on the market for $379,900 late last year, shortly before moving to Raleigh, N.C., for Mr. Toner's job. He expects that the eventual buyer will be a transplant from elsewhere in New England who is willing to pay significantly more than $350,000.


Summary: Brian Taylor, principal of the middle school, explained that such performance was achieved by concentration on the students. He said that if kids are struggling, then they pull them out of physical ed one day or two a week and give them assistance.

Summary: Brian Taylor, principal of the middle school, explained that such performance was achieved by concentration on the students. Mr. Taylor said that if kids are struggling, they pull them out of physical ed one day or two a week and give them assistance.


Summary: Last year the organization hired a new chief executive, Theodore Mitchell, a former president of Occidental College and dean of the School of Education at the University of California, Los Angeles, now the education adviser to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.


Summary: New Schools has contributed $3.3 million to help Michael Piscal and his Inner City Education Foundation start View Park elementary, middle and high school in the poor neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Mr. Piscal, 39, was a teacher at one of Los Angeles's highest-rated private schools until 1994, when he decided to try teaching children in what is considered an underserved neighborhood. Today, with three schools open and growing, Mr. Piscal plans to start 20 more schools in the same South Los Angeles area. Mr. Piscal says that according to a foundation that supports education, the middle school grades six to eight has the highest test scores in math for African-American students in all of California.

Summary: New Schools has contributed $3.3 million to help Michael Piscal and his Inner City Education Foundation start View Park elementary, middle and high school in the poor neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Mr. Piscal, 39, was a teacher at one of Los Angeles's highest-rated private schools until 1994, when he decided to try teaching children in what is considered an underserved neighborhood. Today, with three schools open and growing, He plans to start 20 more schools in the same South Los Angeles area. He says the middle school, grades six to eight, has the highest test scores in math for African-American students in all of California.


Summary: The protesters, who included relatives and former colleagues of the dead officer, demanded that Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian leader, impose order in Gaza and called for Nasser Youssef, the Palestinian interior minister, to resign. Mr. Abbas said the participation of Hamas in the Jan. 25 parliamentary elections was a tacit recognition of the Palestinian Authority set up under the 1993 Oslo accords, which also propose a two-state solution with a Palestinian state next to Israel. How Mr. Abbas will square such comments with his own views is unclear, unless Hamas decides to limit its role to a representation in the relatively powerless Palestinian legislature. Mr. Abbas has also promised to disarm Hamas after the elections.

Summary: Mahmoud Abbas, who was the Palestinian leader, impose order in Gaza and called for Nasser Youssef, the Palestinian interior minister, to resign as the protesters, who included relatives and former colleagues of the dead officer demanded. Mr. Abbas, in an interview with Al Jazeera, said the participation of Hamas that parliamentary elections was a tacit recognition of the Palestinian Authority set up under the 1993 Oslo accords, which also propose a two-state solution with a Palestinian state next to Israel. Further Mr. Abbas said that on the basis of the Oslo accords which rule the legislative council and all the agreements that took place afterward between us and the Israelis, and subsequently the roadmap. Mr. Abbas has also promised to disarm Hamas after the elections.


Summary: In two weeks, Mardi Gras parades will begin rolling in New Orleans, bringing revelers intent on proving they can still party in the Big Easy. During Mardi Gras, 911 calls usually triple. It is frightening to think about what could happen without additional resources. So far, the city has been unable to scrape together even small additions to prepare for Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras throws the health crisis into sharper relief, but it extends beyond the party season. It will take years to get the health care system back to what it was, but there are only days until the festival begins on Feb. 18. New Orleans needs a triumphant Mardi Gras, not a dangerous one.

Summary: In two weeks, Mardi Gras parades will begin rolling in New Orleans, bringing revelers intent on proving they can still party in the Big Easy. It is frightening to think about what could happen without additional resources. So far, the city has been unable to scrape together even small additions to prepare for Mardi Gras. It throws the health crisis into sharper relief, but it extends beyond the party season. It will take years to get the health care system back to what it was, but there are only days until the festival begins. New Orleans needs a triumphant Mardi Gras, not a dangerous one.


Summary: Prime Minister Ariel Sharon remained in critical but stable condition on Saturday, a spokesman for Hadassah-Ein Kerem Hospital said. Mr. Sharon, 77, who had a major stroke on Jan. 4, was still receiving a small amount of sedatives, said the spokesman, Ron Krumer. Mr. Sharon has undergone three lengthy operations to reduce swelling and clean away clots in his brain, but his vital signs are now said to be normal.

Summary: Prime Minister Ariel Sharon remained in critical but stable condition on Saturday, a spokesman for Hadassah-Ein Kerem Hospital said. Mr. Sharon, 77, who had a major stroke on Jan. 4, was still receiving a small amount of sedatives, said the spokesman, Ron Krumer. Doctors began Wednesday to reduce the amount of sedatives they had been giving him to keep him in an induced coma. He has responded to pain in his right leg and both arms but has not regained consciousness. He has undergone three lengthy operations to reduce swelling and clean away clots in his brain, but his vital signs are now said to be normal.


Summary: Mr. Abbas, in an interview with the Arabic satellite network Al Jazeera, said the participation of Hamas in the Jan. 25 parliamentary elections was a tacit recognition of the Palestinian Authority set up under the 1993 Oslo accords, which also propose a two-state solution with a Palestinian state next to Israel. Hamas calls for Israel's destruction in its charter, but says it could abide by a long-term truce with an Israel within its 1967 boundaries. How Mr. Abbas will square such comments with his own views is unclear, unless Hamas decides to limit its role to a representation in the relatively powerless Palestinian legislature. Mr. Abbas has also promised to disarm Hamas after the elections.

Summary: Hamas calls for Israel's destruction in its charter but says it could abide by a long-term truce with Israel within its 1967 boundaries. Hamas leaders, most recently Mahmoud Zahar in an interview with The New York Times, said Hamas would refuse to disarm or to recognize Israel and would not recognize agreements between the P.L.O. and Israel in other words, Oslo or any other agreement. Israel will ban campaigning by Hamas candidates, because Hamas is a terrorist organization with an active military wing committed to Israel's destruction, and therefore should not be able to run in the elections at all based on the same Oslo accords Mr. Abbas cites.


Summary: Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. In one meeting yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority.

Summary: Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. The governor and Mr. Silverstein began closing in on a tentative deal this week. In one of a flurry of meetings yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority.


Michael R. Bloomberg
Bloomberg
Mayor Bloomberg

Summary: Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. Mayor Bloomberg has also raised the possibility that Mr. Silverstein would run out of money after building only two of the five towers, then default on his lease and realize hundreds of millions of dollars in profit. In a meeting yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority. The authority and Mayor Bloomberg have sought assurances that a final deal would be contingent on resolving these matters quickly.

Summary: Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. Mayor Bloomberg has also raised the possibility that Mr. Silverstein would run out of money after building only two of the five towers, then default on his lease and realize hundreds of millions of dollars in profit. In one of a flurry of meetings yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority. The authority and Mayor Bloomberg have sought assurances that a final deal would be contingent on resolving these matters quickly.


Port Authority of New York
Port Authority

Summary: An agreement on a major realignment of the rebuilding effort at ground zero continued to elude government officials and the developer Larry A. Silverstein yesterday, even as the Port Authority board planned to meet today to discuss the matter. So far, the support has been withheld for fear that the tentative deal would enrich the developer at the Port Authority's expense and fail to ensure that the entire project is completed. In one meeting yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority.

Summary: Governor Pataki deals with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. After that, Governor Corzine, who shares control of the Port Authority with Mr. Pataki, said the financial plans ''aren't encouraging to me.'' He said the final deal should provide about $100 million for the memorial, which is over budget and having trouble raising money.


Summary: Joanna Rose, a spokeswoman for Gov. George E. Pataki, said that the talks are continuing.

Summary: ''Talks are continuing,'' said Joanna Rose, a spokeswoman for Gov. George E. Pataki.


Summary: An agreement on a major realignment of the rebuilding effort at ground zero continued to elude government officials and the developer Larry A. Silverstein yesterday, even as the Port Authority board planned to meet today to discuss the matter. Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. Mayor Bloomberg has also raised the possibility that Mr. Silverstein would run out of money after building only two of the five towers, then default on his lease and realize hundreds of millions of dollars in profit. In contrast, Mr. Silverstein continues to insist that he can and will complete the entire job.

Summary: The Port Authority board planned to meet the discuss the matter about an agreement on a major realignment of the rebuilding effort at ground zero continued to elude government officials and the developer Larry A. Silverstein. Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Mr. Silverstein, whose annual rent will rise to $125.25 million in July, wants a rent reduction worth as much as $500 million over the length of the lease. Further, Mr. Silverstein continues to insist that he can and will complete the entire job.


Summary: But when the governor and Mr. Silverstein began closing in on a tentative deal this week, Port Authority executives, Gov. Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. So far, they have withheld their support for fear that the tentative deal would enrich the developer at the Port Authority's expense and fail to ensure that the entire project is completed. Yesterday, Governor Corzine, who shares control of the Port Authority with Mr. Pataki, said the financial plans weren't encouraging to him. He said the final deal should provide about $100 million for the memorial, which is over budget and having trouble raising money.

Summary: Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. So far, they have withheld their support for fear that the tentative deal would enrich the developer at the Port Authority's expense and fail to ensure that the entire project is completed. Yesterday, Governor Corzine, who shares control of the Port Authority with Mr. Pataki, said the financial plans were not encouraging to him. He said the final deal should provide about $100 million for the memorial, which is over budget and having trouble raising money.


Summary: Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed.


Summary: Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, who is leaving office at the end of the year. Last month, Attorney General Eliot L. Spitzer suggested that wholesalers who continued supplying cigarettes lacking a tax stamp, which sell for as little as half as much as cigarettes in nonreservation stores, to Indian merchants could lose their licenses.

Summary: Attorney General Eliot L. Spitzer suggested that wholesalers who continued supplying cigarettes lacking a tax stamp, which sell for as little as half as much as cigarettes in nonreservation stores, to Indian merchants could lose their licenses. Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, a Republican who is leaving office at the end of the year. Mr. Spitzer has said that you can't announce to the world that a law will simply be ignored and not enforced.


Summary: Gov. George E. Pataki's budget proposal calls for delaying enforcement of the law, which took effect on March 1, until next year. But the Pataki administration's decision to delay enforcement of the new law has also fueled a partisan debate in Albany, where many Democrats have criticized the Republican governor for ignoring a significant source of revenue, because the state is not getting the $1.50-a-pack taxes it collects on cigarettes sold everywhere else in the state. Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, a Republican who is leaving office at the end of the year.

Summary: George E. Pataki's budget proposal calls for delaying enforcement of the law, which took effect on March 1, until next year. But the Pataki administration's decision to delay enforcement of the new law has also fueled a partisan debate in Albany, where many Democrats have criticized the Republican governor for ignoring a significant source of revenue because the state is not getting the $1.50-a-pack taxes it collects on cigarettes sold everywhere else in the state. Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, a Republican who is leaving office at the end of the year.


Summary: Across the street from Randy Chrysler's Smoke Shop on the Tuscarora reservation near Niagara Falls sits a pile of tires and wood pallets, a reminder of the fires set during American Indian demonstrations against state tax policies in 1997 that closed several Interstate highways. Mr. Chrysler said he laid off about a dozen of his 30 employees shortly after being notified by the wholesaler that it was stopping shipments last week.

Summary: Across the street from Randy's Smoke Shop on the Tuscarora reservation near Niagara Falls sits a pile of tires and wood pallets, a reminder of the fires set during American Indian demonstrations against state tax policies in 1997 that closed several Interstate highways. ''How are we supposed to live?'' said Pauline Chrysler, whose son, Randy Chrysler, is a smoke shop owner. Mr. Chrysler said he laid off about a dozen of his 30 employees shortly after being notified by the wholesaler that it was stopping shipments last week. One of Mr. Chrysler's brothers started a bottled-water supplier, while another opened a sneaker shop, both on the same property as his store.


Summary: Kevin Quinn, a spokesman for the governor, said that their goal has always been to solve this matter through cooperation instead of confrontation.

Summary: ''Our goal has always been to solve this matter through cooperation instead of confrontation,'' said Kevin Quinn, a spokesman for the governor.


Geoffrey Knoop
Savannah
Savannah Knoop
Knoop

Summary: Geoffrey Knoop is Ms. Albert's partner for the last 16 years. Mr. Knoop, whose 25-year-old half-sister Savannah Knoop was unmasked by The New York Times last month as the public face of JT Leroy, said that he had come forward out of concern for his son, family members and others affected by what he called an all-consuming web of deceit.

Summary: Geoffrey Knoop, 39, a rock musician and Ms. Albert's partner for the last 16 years. Mr. Knoop said that he played an important role in the creation of JT Leroy, who developed a cult literary following. He said that it was unexpected and did not expect it to reach such levels, but admitted that it was over now.  If Mr. Knoop is to share in any of the monies generated by JT Leroy's books and films, he might need to demonstrate that he was an integral part of the deception. Mr. Knoop's account also sheds light on one of the most confounding aspects of the Leroy story, the involvement of a Bay Area psychologist, Dr. Terrence Owens, whom JT Leroy is often credited with starting his writing career.


Summary: Mr. Knoop's account also sheds light on one of the most confounding aspects of the Leroy story, the involvement of a Bay Area psychologist, Dr. Terrence Owens, whom JT Leroy often credited with starting his writing career. Several writers, including Mr. Benderson and Patti Sullivan, a screenwriter who worked on a film script for ''Sarah,'' said that they took part in conference calls with Dr. Owens and JT Leroy when the writer was supposedly experiencing psychological problems. In a phone call, Dr. Owens said that he did not know Mr. Knoop and that patient confidentiality constrained him from speaking.

Summary: Dr. Terrence Owens, a Bay Area psychologist has the the involvement with Mr. Knoop who's account also sheds light on one of the most confounding aspects of the Leroy story whom JT Leroy often credited with starting his writing career. Mr. Knoop said that Dr. Owens himself was a dupe. Dr. Owens further said ''I know it doesn't meet the public curiosity, but it's a different obligation I'm held to''.


Summary: Kenneth A. Shea, managing director for global equity research at S.& P., said that these sneak peeks at earnings come from corporate executives' desire to let analysts down, or up, gently. Mr. Shea says some retailers are likely to make preannouncements this week, but he questions just how useful this dance of the pennies per share is. When it comes to the preannouncements, Mr. Shea's advice to buy-and-hold investors is not to get carried away.

Summary: Kenneth A. Shea is a managing director for global equity research at S.& P. said that these sneak peeks at earnings come from corporate executives' desire to let analysts down, or up, gently. Kenneth A. Shea said that Companies often solicit analysts' input in terms of expectations on earnings and they will guide up or down in the last week or two prior to the close of a quarter to make sure they are realistic in their expectations. He further said that You can argue whether corporate earnings should be such an important signal.


Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. She wore a wig and sunglasses as a disguise, an outfit that would become JT Leroy's trademark. Mr. Knoop, whose 25-year-old half-sister Savannah Knoop was unmasked by The New York Times last month as the public face of JT Leroy, said that he had come forward out of concern for his son, family members and others affected by what he called an all-consuming web of deceit.

Summary: central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. Albert write the books of JT Leroy in their San Francisco apartment. Mr. Cooper championed JT Leroy to writers like Bruce Benderson as well as several prominent Manhattan editors. As the books of JT Leroy built an audience -- the first, ''Sarah,'' was published in 2000, followed by ''The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things'' in 2001 -- Mr. Knoop said, media interest in JT Leroy and his improbable story increased.


Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. Ms. Albert conducted telephone conversations as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent. As JT Leroy, Ms. Albert also successfully solicited editorial advice from writers like Michael Chabon and Dave Eggers. As the books of JT Leroy built an audience -- the first, ''Sarah,'' was published in 2000, followed by ''The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things'' in 2001.

Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. The books of JT Leroy was written by Albert in their San Francisco apartment. A telephonic conversations was held by Albert as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent. After that Mr. Cooper championed JT Leroy to writers like Bruce Benderson as well as several prominent Manhattan editors. As the books of JT Leroy built an audience -- the first, ''Sarah,'' was published in 2000, followed by ''The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things'' in 2001 -- Mr. Knoop said, media interest in JT Leroy and his improbable story increased.


Summary: His proposal requires approval of the State Legislature, which is controlled by Mr. Corzine's fellow Democrats.


Summary: The NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency. Last Thursday, in comments at the National Space Club in Washington, Dr. Griffin said the agency must ensure that its scientists can speak freely on the implications of their work for policy -- as long as they do not imply they are representing NASA.

Summary: The NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency after the disclosure comes nearly in two weeks. Dr. Griffin, who became administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in April, have been reported to senior scientists and administrators who are assembling complaints as part of a review of communications policies. Dr. Griffin also announced the review of communications policies after complaints last month by James E. Hansen, the agency's top climate scientist, that political appointees were trying to stop him from speaking out on global warming.


Summary: According to colleagues, Ms. Cook-Anderson said that Glenn Mahone, the then assistant administrator for public affairs, had told her that a planned news conference on fresh readings by a new NASA satellite, Aura, that measures ozone and air pollution, should not take place until after the election. Mr. Mahone has since left NASA. He did not return several calls seeking comment yesterday.

Summary: In a conference call with colleagues, the colleagues said, she said that Glenn Mahone, then the assistant administrator for public affairs had told her that a planned news conference on fresh readings by a new NASA satellite, Aura, that measures ozone and air pollution, should not take place until after the election. Cook-Anderson, writer and editor of NASA said, ''While I can't discuss these matters, I won't disagree with that description of what took place.'' Mr. Mahone has since left NASA. Cook-Anderson to cut back on news releases. Dean Acosta, a political appointee previously he was Mr. Mahone's deputy and presently Dr. Griffin's press secretary said he had never pressed Ms. Cook-Anderson to cut back on news releases.


Summary: The Tax Department has indicated that it will continue with its current policy as the governor and Legislature discuss these matters. Administration officials have said they are concerned that a repeat of the 1997 protests could slow interstate commerce, divert trucks carrying hazardous loads through heavily populated communities if the Interstates are blockaded again, and cost the state millions of dollars in state police expenses. But by Friday, a lawyer for the wholesaler said he had received word from the Tax Department that shipments of unstamped cigarettes could continue.

Summary: The Tax Department has indicated it will continue its current policy as the governor and Legislature discuss these matters. Administration officials have said they are concerned that a repeat of the 1997 protests could slow interstate commerce, divert trucks carrying hazardous loads through heavily populated communities if the Interstates are blockaded again, and cost the state millions of dollars in state police expenses. But by Friday, a lawyer for the wholesaler said he had received word from the Tax Department that shipments of unstamped cigarettes could continue.


Summary: The Transportation Trust Fund collects money from the state's gasoline tax to pay for major road, bridge and rail repairs, but has been depleted by years of borrowing.

Summary: The Transportation Trust Fund collects money from the state's gasoline tax to pay for major road, bridge and rail repairs but has been depleted by years of borrowing.


Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's continuous efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains and buses came under severe criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made limited progress in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001 attack. The Transportation Committee had called a hearing to insist that transit officials account for how they would spend more than $590 million that was first committed in late 2002 to fortify the public transportation system.

Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's protracted efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains and buses came under withering criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made far too little progress in the years. The Transportation Committee had called a hearing to insist that transit officials account for how they would spend more than $590 million that was first committed in late 2002 to fortify the public transportation system. She declined to provide details, but said the authority would spend $220 million on ''hardening'' M.T.A. properties against attack.


Summary: Top political appointees in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) press office exerted strong pressure during the 2004 presidential campaign to cut the flow of news releases on glaciers, climate, pollution, and other earth sciences. The disclosure comes nearly two weeks after the NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency. The subject is likely to come up today at a NASA budget hearing before the Science Committee. A central point of division within NASA is how much ''openness'' is appropriate when such expressions conflict with administration policy.

Summary: To cut the flow of news releases on glaciers, climate, pollution and other earth sciences, top political appointees in the NASA press office are appointed, public affairs officers at the agency say. After the NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency, the disclosure comes out. Dr. Griffin, who became administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in April demanded some of the examples which was reported to senior scientists and administrators who are assembling complaints as part of a review of communications policies. At the time, Ms. Cook-Anderson was in charge of managing the flow of earth science news at NASA headquarters.


Summary: Elvia H. Thompson, who recently retired from the NASA press office said there was this general understanding that when something in this field was written about that it was to be described as climate change and not global warming.

Summary: Elvia H. Thompson, a recently retired person from NASA said that among them there was this general understanding that if something in this field was written about it was to be described as climate change and not global warming.


Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's protracted efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains, and buses came under withering criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made little progress in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001, attack.

Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's protracted efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains and buses came under withering criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made far too little progress in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001, attack. The members of City Council said that most of the planned security improvements would be late in coming and that the contract with Lockheed Martin, approved last August after the bombing of the London subway system, might have been signed in haste.


Summary: John C. Liu, a councilman from Queens and the committee chairman asked why can't the transit authority work outside its standard procedures and get things done, levelling some of the most pointed criticism at the contract with Lockheed Martin, which has already reported cost overruns. He added that touching and feeling should have been done long before a contract was awarded.

Summary: John C. Liu, a councilman from Queens and the committee chairman asked that why the transit authority cannot work outside its standard procedures and get things done. He leveled some of the most pointed criticism at the contract with Lockheed Martin, which has already reported cost overruns. Mr. Liu said that touching and feeling should have been done long before a contract was awarded.


Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. Albert, aged  40, from Brooklyn. Geoffrey Knoop, Ms. Albert's partner for the last 16 years, said that he had seen Ms. Albert write the books of JT Leroy in their apartment and he had been present when Ms. Albert conducted telephone conversations as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers, and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent.

Summary: The book which was actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert, confirmed by a central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy and he said that no one named JT Leroy exists. Albert's partner said in a telephone interview  that he had seen Ms. Albert write the books of JT Leroy in their San Francisco apartment. She usually conduct telephone conversations as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent. She used to change his identity over the call and the interviews. He was 40, and originally from Brooklyn. Ms. Albert and her partner got separated because of stress caused by the deception.


Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin Corporation

Summary: Officials had announced only one major contract, a $212 million deal with the Lockheed Martin Corporation to install high-tech cameras and motion sensors in the subway system. Lockheed Martin had proposed a similar system of security equipment for the London subways years ago and was rejected.

Summary: Officials of Metropolitan Transportation Authority had announced only one major contract, a $212 million deal with the Lockheed Martin Corporation to install high-tech cameras and motion sensors in the subway system. The contract with Lockheed Martin approved last August by the council officials after the bombing of the London subway system. John C. Liu, a councilman from Queens and the committee chairman asked that Why the transit authority cannot work outside its standard procedures and get things done at times ? this councilman from Queens leveled some of the most pointed criticism at the contract with Lockheed Martin. Lockheed Martin had proposed a similar system of security equipment for the London subways years ago and which was rejected.


Summary: The Lubavitcher Hasidim have not chosen a successor to their last grand rabbi, Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who died in 1994.

Summary: Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who died in 1994, was last grand rabbi, was not shoosen by The Lubavitcher Hasidim.


Summary: Aaron, the eldest son of Rabbi Teitelbaum, was first named to run the second-largest Satmar congregation, in Kiryas Joel in Orange County. He had previously named Aaron, his eldest son, to run the second-largest Satmar congregation, in Kiryas Joel in Orange County.

Summary: Moses Teitelbaum had two sons named Aaron and Zalmen Teitelbaum, both at their father's bedside, facing each other for the first time in several years, which was said by Mr. Weiss. Moses Teitelbaum had previously named his eldest son Aaron, to run the second-largest Satmar congregation, in Kiryas Joel in Orange County.


Summary: A brief report this week from the Census Bureau, highlighting how welfare programs and tax credits affect incomes among the poor, has fanned the politically charged debate on poverty in the United States and how best to measure it, with conservatives offering praise and liberals saying it underplays the extent of deprivation. Over the last decade, a host of technical studies by the National Academy of Sciences, academic scholars, and the Census Bureau have analyzed incomes and needs under varying assumptions. In a news release this week, the bureau called the report ''part of an ongoing Census Bureau effort to understand economic well-being and poverty in America,'' adding that the bureau ''has been working to streamline and simplify the many ways to consider the poverty rate.'' Bureau officials did not respond to requests yesterday by telephone and e-mail for further comment on the report and its critics.

Summary: Census Bureau releases a report stating how welfare programs and tax credits affect incomes among the poor which has fanned the politically charged debate on poverty in the United States. The incomes and needs under varying assumptions, over the last decades was analyzed by various hosts of technical studies by the National Academy of Sciences, academic scholars and the Census Bureau.


Summary: Gov. Jon S. Corzine unveiled a plan on Friday to replenish New Jersey's depleted fund for road and bridge maintenance by refinancing $1.8 billion of the fund's debt, a move that would add billions of dollars to the state debt over the next 30 years. He was elected on a promise to end the lavish spending and borrowing that has weakened New Jersey's finances and considered raising the gas tax and selling the New Jersey Turnpike rest stops and other assets. Instead, he presented a proposal that would raise $78 million a year by reclaiming for the fund the 1.5 cents a gallon portion of the gas tax that now helps pay for the state's general operating expenses. He would also add new oversight to monitor how the fund spends its money.

Summary: Jon S. Corzine who was a governor unveiled a plan to replenish New Jersey's depleted fund for road and bridge maintenance by refinancing $1.8 billion of the fund's debt. This is the first major fiscal decision of the Corzine administration to avoid the politically risky step of increasing the state's gasoline tax. He was elected on a promise to end the lavish spending and borrowing that has weakened New Jersey's finances and he considered raising the gas tax and selling the New Jersey Turnpike. Instead he claim a proposal which helps pay for the state's general operating expenses, he raise $78 million a year by reclaiming for the fund the 1.5 cents a gallon portion of the gas tax. Mr. Corzine, he was a former bond trader, would turn to the capital market to raise most of the money.


Summary: General Motors, which in the United States struggles with ballooning pension and benefits payments, among other things, has more basic troubles in Russia -- the company was without engines for 11 days this month. G.M. said Monday that it had settled a dispute with a Russian business partner over the price of engines and other parts and that production would resume Tuesday.

Summary: General Motors, which in the United States struggles with ballooning pension and benefits payments, has more basic troubles in Russia. G.M. said that it had settled a dispute with a Russian business partner over the price of engines and other parts, and that production would resume Tuesday. Its board was taken over by government officials amid a general trend toward greater state control of the Russian economy. That enmeshed G.M. in the politics of the domestic auto industry, which a few years ago embraced foreign investment but has since taken on a nationalistic bent. That could make G.M.'s cooperation with Avtovaz, which builds S.U.V.'s, leading analysts to speculate that there were larger issues at stake in the dispute over engine prices. A spokeswoman for the G.M. joint venture also declined to comment, as did a spokesman for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.


Summary: In making the announcement yesterday with Mr. Bloomberg, Linda I. Gibbs, a deputy mayor, and the Children's Services commissioner, John B. Mattingly, gave the clearest indication to date of where they now believe the system broke down in the case of Nixzmary Brown.

Summary: After a discussion with Mr. Bloomberg, Linda I. Gibbs, a deputy mayor, and the Children's Services commissioner, John B. Mattingly, gave the clearest indication to date of where they now believe the system broke down in the case of Nixzmary Brown.


Summary: In 1996, Gail B. Nayowith, the executive director of the Citizens' Committee for Children, a nonprofit research and advocacy group said that there has not been this level of interest in child protective work since the child welfare administration was created.

Summary: Gail B. Nayowith, the executive director of the Citizens' Committee for Children, a nonprofit research and advocacy group, said in 1996 that there had not been this level of interest in child protective work since the child welfare administration was created.