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Tick spraying at Loudoun parks alarms beekeepers

Higgins, who co-sponsored the Lyme disease campaign along with Vice Chairman Janet Clarke (R-Blue Ridge) and Supervisor Kenneth “Ken” Reid (R-Leesburg), said at the March 20 meeting that many constituents identified Lyme disease as a critical issue during his campaign in the fall. Higgins said that he had recently heard from residents concerned about the spraying and that the county planned the insecticide application carefully to minimize environmental impact. The total sprayed area was also very small, he said — 196 acres — and Loudoun’s total acreage is about 333,000. “We believed that our careful approach would protect citizens and their children while having a minimal impact on honeybees and other insects, given the size of Loudoun County,” Higgins said. The spraying at county parks — including Franklin, Woodgrove, Lucketts Community, Ashburn, Conklin, Phil Bolen, Neil Boone, Mickie Gordon Memorial and Claude Moore parks — was completed this week. The application took place during a seasonal time frame that beekeepers described as “peak nectar flow,” when local bees are gathering nectar that will later be harvested for honey. The spraying at all county parks took place in the early hours, and that is when bees are most likely to be foraging on flowering plants, said Richard Fell, a professor of entomology at Virginia Tech University who specializes in bees and beekeeping. “Those are lousy times to spray,” Fell said. “Normally, what we recommend is to spray in the late afternoon or early evening, when your foraging bee numbers are way down.” Fell said that parks filled with blooming plants and weeds such as dandelions and clover would be a natural foraging ground for bees. “If they’re spraying blooming plants, there’s a very good chance that they’re not only going to be killing honeybees, but other bee species, as well,” he said, adding that there are more than 400 species of bees in Virginia. Higgins noted that the spraying took place in mowed areas, rather than meadows, although beekeepers expressed concern that the wind could carry the insecticide to neighboring plants. Bundy said the application of the insecticide could have a significant impact on the broader agricultural community. Beyond fueling honey sales, bees play a vital role in Loudoun’s rural economy by pollinating many crops, he said. Just as beekeepers work with farmers to coordinate the timing and application of pesticides, Bundy said, the same relationship should exist with the county.

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Family lobbies for soldier to be included in Taliban prisoner swap

The parents of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, an American captured by the Taliban nearly three years ago, have made an emotional appeal for the Obama administration to make a deal with the insurgents to release him in exchange for Afghan prisoners being held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. “Everybody is frustrated with how slowly the process has evolved,” Bob Bergdahl said in a newspaper interview in the family’s home state of Idaho. “I’m pushing it hard. We started out by trying to encourage the Taliban to take care of our son. . . . Now, we’re worried that the government isn’t concerned enough to put him on the [negotiating] table.” Hours after the appeal was published in Wednesday’s Idaho Mountain Express, the administration broke its own silence on Sgt. Bergdahl, detailing what it said were nonstop efforts to locate and free him, through negotiations or other means. “I wouldn’t rule anything in or out,” said Col. Dave Lapan, director of the Defense Department press office. Late last year, State Department negotiators put together a tentative deal in which five Taliban prisoners would be transferred from Cuba to house arrest in Qatar, where their families could join them. Bergdahl was to be released after the first two insurgents arrived. But the deal fell apart, and U.S-Taliban peace talks have been stalled since January. The appeal from Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s parents has induced the administration to make public its efforts to win his release in U.S.-Taliban negotiations that have been stalled since January. (Anonymous/AP/IntelCenter) The Washington Post had withheld information on the Bergdahl aspect of the negotiations since last year at the request of White House officials, who said publicizing them could endanger his life. Those Taliban members opposed to negotiations, they said, might kill him to stop the talks. Bergdahl’s parents, Bob and Jani, are scheduled as featured speakers at the annual Rolling Thunder Memorial Day demonstration on behalf of missing and imprisoned U.S. service members this month in Washington. Administration officials, who anticipated the family might choose that moment to speak out, appeared surprised at the Idaho interview. “We had concerns about the security situation,” said one U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter. “But this is now a different scenario. If they want to talk about it,” the official said of the parents, “we can’t ask for it to be withheld.” A senior U.S. military

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What about trying to free Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl?

It is appalling that the United States is releasing high-level detainees from a prison in Afghanistan, in a “strategic release” program [“U.S. frees high-level Afghan detainees,” front page, May 7], while the Taliban still holds a U.S. soldier as a prisoner of war. Bowe R. Bergdahl What is being done to gain this forgotten soldier’s release? Jack M. Sands, Waldorf

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The May 6 front-page article “Psychiatrists seek new name, and less stigma, for PTSD” touched on the shame that soldiers associate with having a mental disorder, but it skirted the importance of protecting them from recurrent exposure to combat. A 2008 Army surgeon general’s study “found that more than 25 percent of soldiers who completed three or four tours of duty in Iraq showed signs of mental-health problems such as PTSD, compared to 11 percent after a first deployment.” My Universal National Service Act, aka “the draft bill,” will help reduce the burden of our soldiers, who make up less than 1 percent of the American population. By requiring 30 million Americans from ages 18 to 25 to perform two years of national service in either the armed services or in civilian life, we will be asking for shared sacrifice from all citizens. Charles B. Rangel, Washington The writer, a Democrat, represents New York’s 15th District in the U.S. House.

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Roman Totenberg, violin master and teacher, dies at 101

Totenberg said in an interview, “he would play on the street, and people would give him bread and butter. He said it was the first time he realized the power of music, because people paid him with what was most valuable to them.” In 1921, Mr. Totenberg’s family moved to Warsaw, where he studied at a conservatory and made his solo debut with an orchestra at 11. He received a gold medal from the Chopin Conservatory before moving to Berlin in 1928 to study with renowned teacher Carl Flesch. As the Nazis consolidated power throughout Germany, Mr. Totenberg moved to Paris, where he studied mathematics at the Sorbonne and music with conductor Pierre Monteux and violinist George Enescu. In 1935, after several private performances in Washington salons, Mr. Totenberg appeared at DAR Constitution Hall with the National Symphony Orchestra. A Washington Post review noted the “rousing welcome to the young Polish violinist,” who was called back to the stage for six curtain calls. “His playing is pervaded with a continuous glow,” critic Ray C.B. Brown wrote, “a steady radiance of timbre which indicates his emotional identity with the music.” Mr. Totenberg toured South America with Rubinstein in 1937 and performed at the White House, where Eleanor Roosevelt personally served him dinner. Through the 1940s, Mr. Totenberg was an itinerant virtuoso, performing as a soloist and chamber musician around the globe. He performed works from every period of the violin repertoire and premiered new pieces by many 20th-century composers, including Paul Hindemith, Darius Milhaud and William Schuman. Mr. Totenberg, who was 11 when he had his first violin student, began teaching in earnest in the 1940s at conservatories in New York and Baltimore and at summer music festivals in Colorado, Massachusetts and Maine. In 1961, he joined Boston University and took on select private students. “One of the joys of teaching,” Mr. Totenberg said in 1995, “is that you open . . . doors to students. It’s very gratifying to open a new door and have them say, ‘Oh, what a beautiful room!’ ” Botstein, who was 13 when he began studying with Mr. Totenberg, said he could be an imposing, if quietly encouraging teacher. “I remember distinctly after about eight months of exercises and scales, he smiled at me and said, ‘Not bad.’ ” Botstein said. “That was the highest praise. I was on cloud nine for months.” Mr. Totenberg’s

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Aspiring D.C. pot dealers challenge rejections to sell medical marijuana

they have decided not to pursue legal action. For nearly a year, the women have used their retirement savings to lease a dispensary location in Shaw, hoping to provide medical marijuana to people with glaucoma, AIDS, cancer and multiple sclerosis. They want to know exactly where they fell short in their months-long application bid. “We don’t want to waste their time or our time,” Rice said. “It’s confusing even to us.” The health department, which is overseeing the roll-out of the medical marijuana program, relied on a panel of experts to score each application. The agency told one applicant that much of the proposal was “adequate,” but denied it anyway. It dinged at least three of the unsuccessful applicants for not providing a sample label even though the application didn’t require one. Rice’s group asked to see its scores through a request under the District of Columbia Freedom of Information Act. But the agency refused to release the scores or other material that would shed light on the panel’s decision-making process, arguing that a final announcement has not yet been made, and that such documents contain trade secrets. The scores are also part of confidential deliberations by government officials that the city is not legally obligated to disclose, said health department spokeswoman Najma Roberts. That explanation troubles the applicants who were turned away. “I don’t understand why this is so secretive, especially for something so high-profile,” said Tom Lindenfeld, a local political consultant working with Compassion Centers, which is affiliated with an established dispensary operator in California. The two other groups that have filed appeals are the Health Company, which is led by Michael Duplessie, a Bethesda ophthalmologist, and the Free World Remedy, led by Jonathan Marlow, a competitive bass fisherman from Northern Virginia whose mother suffers from multiple sclerosis. The legal challenges are the latest wrinkle in a selection process marred by glitches from the start. Since passing a medical marijuana law in 2010, the District has taken a go-slow approach in an effort to avoid some of the mistakes that have been made in other jurisdictions, such as Colorado and California, where critics say medical marijuana has become little more than legalized drug dealing. The District’s regulations are among the toughest in the country, with strict limits on how many plants can be grown, how much the dispensaries can charge and who can buy it. Only people with

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Civilization V: Gods and Kings hands-on preview

their religions from scratch. Adding shrines and temples to your empire gains you Faith, which in turn can be spent to found a religion or build missionary units. You can mix and match aspects of religion to get different bonuses that fit your personal style before sending missionaries out to convert other cities to your faith. Combat has also changed in the expansion — particularly for naval units — which requires a bit more strategy from the player. Your navy now has ranged and melee units, meaning that it’s probably best to move in fleets. The same is true of your land units, which fight on a much more nuanced scale that makes you more likely take the time to send out a few units to flank an enemy rather than just sending one out with the hope that your luck will carry the day. If you like to be a little sneakier, the game also gives you the option of stealing research from your neighbors by training spies. The espionage element isn’t sketched out quite as well as most other aspects of Civ, mainly because you never see your recruits’ faces or hear their voices. Maybe that’s normal spy protocol, but it’s honestly it a little less fun to steal if you can’t see your agents sneaking around. Still, it’s great to see the espionage dynamic included in the expansion. The game also adds a handful of new rulers vying for global dominance — including Dido, Gustavus Adolphus and Boudicca — and has some great additions to the technology tree that give even veteran players something new and exciting to work toward. The game preview ended too early to take advantage of a few of the options listed, but they included improved weapons units such as World War I tanks and awesome new wonders like the Hubble Space Telescope or the City of Petra. (That was for you, “Indiana Jones” fans.) The deep changes to the gameplay and new twists on old features make Gods and Kings a great follow-up to Civilization V, and well worth a look. If the hours I sunk into the preview alone are any indication, this is an expansion that was worth a two-year wait . Related stories: Xbox bundle would be next step in console price wars Wonkblog - End the Fed: The video game Diablo III out for open beta this weekend

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Records: Suspect in tourist’s death sought gun

The 19-year-old District man charged with killing a 66-year-old tourist sought to buy a gun in the week before that attack, according to court documents. Police on Wednesday said they charged Michael W. Davis, brother of professional football players Vernon and Vontae Davis, with first-degree murder in the death of Gary Dederichs of Denver. Davis has also been charged with two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed for allegedly sneaking up on people in his Petworth neighborhood in Northwest Washington and hitting them on the head with a hammer. According to court documents released Thursday, Davis asked a person in his neighborhood how he could buy a gun on at least five occasions in the week leading up to Dederichs’s April 24 death from a head wound in an alley in the 800 block of Emerson Street NW. The documents did not indicate whether Davis acquired a gun. None of the attacks in which he is charged involved firearms. The witness who told police that Davis asked about guns did not say he sold him one, according to the documents, although he did tell Davis he knew someone who could. Gary Dederichs, a 66-year-old tourist from Denver who was killed in Petworth in April. (AP) The same witness, who told police he knew Davis from the neighborhood for several years, said Davis had a history of PCP use, according to court documents. It was unclear from the documents how recently the witness said Davis had used the drug. Davis was held for psychiatric evaluation a year ago after his teachers and guardian became fearful of his behavior, according to other court papers. Davis was held for approximately 10 days, according to those documents. The court papers do not indicate whether Davis displayed any violence last year, only that he needed treatment. They also do not say what happened while he was held. During a hearing Thursday in D.C. Superior Court, defense attorney Dana Page said that the witness came forward after Davis had been arrested and only provided information that had already been in the media with regard to the alleged attacks. Police were investigating five total attacks, including the fatal beating of Dederichs, in the same area. Another hearing was scheduled for Friday. Davis has been held and evaluated since his arrest, and the hearing is expected to cover details of his mental condition. Page, from

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Afghan commanders show new defiance in dealings with Americans

in a stronger position to stymie the American strategy. The transition will continue in the coming months. This summer, a number of districts and provinces will be formally entrusted to Afghan security forces, the third round of regional transitions. In September, Afghans will assume responsibility for the U.S. military prison at Bagram, with about 3,000 detainees. In the past, Western officials questioned whether Karzai’s opposition to night raids and other U.S.-led operations was politically driven — aimed at proving to his people that he was capable of resisting American demands. Now, with more transitional milestones looming, Afghan political and military leaders say their growing responsibility has made the issue of civilian casualties even more delicate. “Most of the people will say, ‘I don’t blame the foreigners if they kill us, but why do you kill me?’ ” Karimi said. “We have to be concerned. We have to have people on our side.” Each time civilians are killed in either a NATO or Afghan operation, Karzai or one of his advisers calls the Defense Ministry for an explanation. Karimi said the president’s involvement in military affairs centers largely on reducing civilian casualties rather than on dictating troop levels or strategy. NATO officials say they have greatly reduced the number of civilians killed in operations in recent years. The United Nations last year attributed 400 civilian deaths to NATO and Afghan forces, a slight decrease from 2010. “We have significantly improved attention to detail when it comes to targeting,” a U.S. official said. Human rights organizations say they fear that the methods and institutions developed by NATO to both track and prevent civilian casualties will not be replicated by the Afghan security forces. “Right now, Afghan forces don’t have systems in place to prevent and respond to civilian casualties they may cause. International forces evolved their thinking over a decade, realizing they needed a civilian casualty tracking team and policies to investigate civilian harm caused by their own forces,” said Sarah Holewinski, executive director of the Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict. “Without those systems in place, verbal commitments from the Afghan government to not harm civilians are likely to fall flat as Afghan forces take over.” More world news coverage: - Only fear can enter Chen’s village - Pentagon to expand cybersecurity program for defense contractors - Attack in Syria shreds U.N.-backed ceasefire - Read more headlines from around the world

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In Atlantic City, the Revel resort brims with celebrity-chef restaurants

chefs would in turn attract their big-city regulars to that infamous boardwalk — the one so bleakly depicted in Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City” (“Down on the boardwalk they’re getting ready for a fight . . . ”). (Gene Thorp/The Washington Post) While Wiedmaier may not be a celebrity on the level of Jose Garces and Marc Forgione, a pair of media-savvy Iron Chefs who also have restaurants at Revel, he’s a bankable name in the Washington market, where he owns and operates five restaurants, including Marcel’s, his elegant, high-end exercise in French-Flemish cooking, which topped the local Zagat ratings for food in 2011. The guy has more than Old World cooking chops; he has the ability to translate those chops into an approachable, affordable experience like the Mussel Bar. Those expecting a replica of Wiedmaier’s Mussel Bar in Bethesda will be in for a surprise. The Atlantic City version is a Mussel Bar on steroids. It’s essentially a mash-up of Mussel Bar and his Brasserie Beck, with a more expansive menu (including a 52-ounce porterhouse for $110!), a wine list that exceeds 250 bottles, a live music stage and a lengthy bar whose focal point may not be the wall of beers behind the counter but the Harley-Davidson chopper that hangs over it. The bike is Wiedmaier’s. “He has a couple more Harleys, and this is the most uncomfortable,” says Ramon Narvaez, food and beverage director for the Mussel Bar. If there’s any theme to the restaurants at Revel, it’s this: Like some philosophical exercise in how context changes an object, Revel seems to alter the nature of the eateries and the chefs invited to the oceanfront spot. The Mussel Bar is different, yes, but so is the still-unopened Central Michel Richard, the third in the Washington chef’s budding chain of casual American-influenced bistros. (The Revel version is scheduled to open around Wednesday.) While many of the design elements remain the same at the Central in Atlantic City — the circular light fixtures, the decorative stack of dishes, the open kitchen — there’s something unmistakably different about the New Jersey spot. It has to do with Central’s location in Revel. It’s situated near the elevators in a hallway leading to the casino floor. The restaurant has been designed with low walls to allow diners to watch the passing foot traffic. It gives Central the feel of an airport eatery. More

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Bluejacket brewery gets a head start

taste of their first collaboration beer, an imperial porter, at Birch & Barley and ChurchKey on June 7, before the SAVOR craft beer festival that weekend, along with other hard-to-find beers from the Florida breweries. Thick, dark and about 10 percent alcohol, it was inspired by the Funky Buddha head brewer’s recent love affair with salted chocolate. The end product will be a movie-snack-themed beer laced with Florida sea salt, cacao nibs, vanilla beans and dry-roasted peanuts. Parisi brewed two other collaboration beers this week during her trip to California for the 2012 Craft Brewers Conference. Outside Los Angeles, she worked with Patrick Rue’s the Bruery on a syrupy Belgian-style quadrupel with rosemary and local plums. In San Diego, at the Pizza Port Ocean Beach brewpub, she helped brew a Scotch ale containing house-smoked malt. Even though what Bluejacket is doing is rare, it isn’t entirely unheard of. The District’s 3 Stars Brewing, for example, released several collaboration beers during the past year while its brewery was under construction. But 3 Stars was working with relatively low-profile regional breweries, whereas Bluejacket’s approach is set apart by Engert and Parisi’s ability to leverage their many relationships with talented brewers farther afield. (They also have more financial and logistical support than many brewing start-ups, thanks to NRG.) Later this year, Parisi will brew at Dogfish Head’s Rehoboth Beach brewpub and at Peekskill Brewing, in New York, where the head brewer from Maine’s Allagash Brewing also will participate. Of course, Parisi and Engert intend to collaborate with breweries closer to home. Engert says he has had promising conversations with the brewers behind DC Brau, Alexandria’s Cabinet Artisanal Brewhouse and Baltimore’s Stillwater Artisanal Ales and the Brewer’s Art. What accounts for Bluejacket’s early fervor? Parisi cites one factor, which has helped make collaboration beers a fixture of the U.S. craft beer scene: They give brewers opportunities to hang out with friends and learn from one another. “That’s the most fun thing about these collaborations,” she says. “You really see how these other brewers think. How would they approach it differently?” Bluejacket, however, isn’t just pursuing collaborations because they’re fun. Engert says the strategy will allow him to start selling Bluejacket-branded beers as soon as possible, with regular releases coming out over the course of the summer and beyond. Many of the beers also will be appropriate for cellaring or barrel-aging, enabling him to save

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JPMorgan is embarrassed, but not endangered

accounts. I’m all in favor of reining in banks that hold federally insured deposits. I opposed repealing Glass-Steagall, the Depression-era law that separated commercial banking involving insured deposits from investment banking, which is a much riskier business. But Congress, in its wisdom, repealed Glass-Steagall to allow Citibank and Travelers Insurance to combine, a merger that has since largely been undone because management of what became Citigroup had no idea how to run such a large and complex organization. In an ideal world, we would unscramble this egg by forcing institutions to shrink until they were no longer too big to be allowed to fail. However, we’re not going to do that — instead, we’re trying to solve the problem by instituting new and more competent regulation than we’ve had. The Volcker Rule, named for former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, is an example of the problem involved in regulating giant companies in a complex world. The principle sounds wonderful and simple: Don’t let banks use federally insured deposits for risky trades. But implementing it is proving to be incredibly difficult, as realists, including me, predicted would happen. Once bank lawyers finish finding loopholes in the detailed provisions, whatever they prove to be, the rule will probably have little meaningful impact. So bash Morgan all you like for its trading losses, and feel free to snicker at the spectacle of Jamie Dimon losing his swagger and having to eat crow. But don’t confuse Morgan’s mess-up with the supposed need for the Volcker Rule. The Volcker Rule would have symbolic impact, by appearing to rein in Wall Street. But it will prove to be more useful as a full-employment act for loophole specialists than for reining in the banks. Disclosure: I own about $1,400 of Morgan stock, an insignificant portion of my investable assets. It’s the result of bank consolidations and decades of reinvested dividends. The holding stems from my purchase of one share of National Bank of Detroit about 40 years ago, when I was the Detroit Free Press’s banking reporter and wanted guaranteed access to shareholder documents and the company’s annual meeting. More from Post Business: Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson explains false bio, report says Apple’s rumored iPad mini to be under $300, report says Extended jobless benefits cut in eight states Spain’s bank crisis weighs on recovery With new Bing, is Microsoft the first to get ‘social search’ right?

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Faded maps from library’s vaults reveal buried treasures of Washington history

failed, and the exposition went to Chicago. Perhaps the most interesting maps are those that show what the area was like before the city was born. One newer map, researched by Priscilla W. McNeill and published in 1991, depicts tracts like Widow’s Mite in what is today Foggy Bottom, Flint’s Discovery, northeast of Dupont Circle, and Hamburg, north of what is now the Mall’s Constitution Gardens. Notley Young’s plantation was along the water in the area of what today is Maine Avenue SW. A map dating from the late 1700s depicts the footprints of the riverfront mansion, two graveyards, the “overseers garden” and an 11-structure complex designated “houses occupied by negro’s.” One of the presenters at the conference, Dan Bailey, director of the Imaging Research Center at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, has built a high-tech visual re-creation of Young’s vanished spread. Walking in the footsteps of the old map makers, Bailey said: “We picked Notley Young’s plantation for a variety of reasons. . . . He was a major slaveholder. . . . He was also Catholic.” Bailey said his team studied the map, talked to experts and researched local history. “We [virtually] rebuilt the buildings,” he said. “We positioned the buildings in space. One of the maps gave us clues as to where gardens were, where tobacco fields were.” The conclusion, he said, was that this was “a pretty classic plantation, with the long driveway coming up, trees on both sides.” Indeed, a 1912 presentation before the District’s old Columbia Historical Society by a former resident of the mansion, George C. Henning, paints just such a picture. Henning, who had lived there as a child in the late 1830s, described the locust trees along the river bank and the yellow jasmine that grew north of the house, which had a pillared front porch. Young died in 1802. His house was demolished in 1856. But his plantation lives on in the virtual universe, and a map vault in the Library of Congress. The conference, titled “Visualizing the Nation’s Capital,” runs Friday and Saturday. It’s free and open to the public, but reservations are required. They can be made at specialevents@ loc.gov or by calling 202-707-1616. Read more from The Washington Post: Legislators in Va. face much work on last day Customers split over Pepco tree pruning Area churches grapple with same-sex marriage Sign-spinning business has ups and downs

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Culture war looms as Israel pledges to end ultra-Orthodox military exemptions

Netanyahu suggested when he vowed Thursday to make reforms “without setting public against public.” Some say it is too late. Resentment against the ultra-Orthodox, known as Haredim, is intense among Israel’s secular majority and a growing number of officials. Although the current debate is focused on the military — universal conscription is central to Israeli identity — many say the issue is more broadly about spreading the burdens of citizenship to a subsidized, insular group that is expanding in size and influence. An Israeli soldier from an ultra-Orthodox Jewish unit in the Israeli army holds a gun during a training session in 2005. Military exemptions for ultra-Orthodox religious students have fueled resentment among Israel’s secular majority. (Abir Sultan/AP) “There is internal turmoil. It’s social, it’s economic, and it goes to the soul of Israel,” said Uri Regev, a Reform rabbi who is president of Hiddush, a religious freedom organization that is critical of ultra-Orthodox military exemptions. “The way of life that the Haredim adopt challenges our stability.” Expanded political clout Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, granted military exemptions to what was then a group of a few hundred Haredi students, in part because it was assumed that their lifestyle would fade over time. Today, the ultra-Orthodox comprise one-tenth of Israel’s 7.8 million citizens, and 63,000 received exemptions for religious study in 2010. In February, Israel’s Supreme Court annulled a decade-old law created to increase ultra-Orthodox participation in the army, saying it had largely failed. Last year, 15 percent of recruitment-age Haredim enlisted, compared with 75 percent in the rest of the Jewish population. The government pledged last week to craft a replacement that also drafts more Arab Israelis, who are not required to serve. “This issue where some serve and others do not is a moral stain on Israeli society,” said Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz. The ultra-Orthodox, while a varied group, are resistant to military service, some zealously so. Most believe the Jewish state should not exist before the Messiah’s arrival, and they insulate themselves from what they regard as the impious influences of the secular world. Their views are increasingly sparking controversies, including over Haredi demands for gender segregation on public buses. For Haredi men, life centers on the revival of Torah scholarship, which was decimated during the Holocaust. Yitzhak Goldknopf, a prominent ultra-Orthodox rabbi in Jerusalem, said that makes study at religious academies, or yeshivas, as important

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Emil de Cou, associate conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra. (Scott Suchman) This weekend, the Virginia Chamber Orchestra is giving a couple of premieres. What’s notable about them is they’re by Claude Debussy, whose 150th birthday is this year. Debussy’s sole opera, “Pelleas et Melisande,” remains a distinctive standout in the operatic canon, but the composer took a few stabs at dramatic vocal writing before it, including the unfinished opus “Diane au bois,” about the god Eros’s seduction of the chaste Diana. With “Diane,” as later with “Pelleas,” Debussy started writing at a point that interested him, the love duet — “something,” says Paul Meecham, the president and CEO of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, “that he could get his teeth into.” Meecham is not usually concerned with the Virginia Chamber Orchestra, but he has a direct interest in the premieres. One of them, an orchestration of the opera’s overture, is by his old friend Emil de Cou, who when he’s not leading the National Symphony Orchestra’s summer concerts at Wolf Trap and the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra is the VCO’s music director. And the other, an orchestration of the love duet, is by Meecham himself. Orchestral administrators are not generally known for having this level of musical ability. Nor are they noted for their diffidence. “You don’t often run across modest people in the music world,” observes de Cou, who found out about Meecham’s Debussy work when the two overlapped at the San Francisco Symphony in the 1990s, where Meecham was general manager. But Meecham, who trained as a pianist and violinist, downplays his musicological past. He did his master’s thesis on Debussy’s unpublished vocal works, and orchestrated the love duet as a part of the project. “I must have told Emil in a weak moment,” Meecham now says of the events that led to his first — and, he insists, last — American orchestral performance. “Years later, he called me up and said, ‘What about “Diane”?’ I said, ‘You can’t be serious,’ and dug the thing up.” De Cou is no stranger to Debussy reconstruction. His “Debussy: Rediscovered” recording, made in 2000, includes his own orchestration of the odd “Printemps — Suite Symphonique,” which he subsequently performed at the Washington National Cathedral with the NSO in 2003. “Printemps,” written, like “Diane,” while Debussy was living in Rome as a recipient of the Prix de Rome in 1885 and 1886,

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Review of Steve Coll’s ‘Private Empire’: How ExxonMobil bent Washington to its will

end of Raymond’s ridicule sometimes referred to him darkly as ‘the Lip,’ ” Coll writes, a reference to a childhood cleft palate. Raymond’s reforms “would turn one of America’s oldest, most rigid corporations into an even harder, leaner place of rule books and fear-inspiring management techniques,” Coll explains. The introspection and internal reforms triggered by the Valdez spill, plus the new markets in oil and gas that opened up around the world following the collapse of the Soviet Union, propelled the company to new heights, with revenue and profits multiplying to record levels. By 2005, the company’s profits reached $36.1 billion, more than any corporation had ever made before. The company’s size, its profits, internal discipline and the critically important product it sold — energy — gave ExxonMobil inordinate power, which it used ruthlessly. “Compromise was not Exxon’s way” Coll states wryly. That conclusion is borne out by Coll’s detailed examination of many instances where the company had to confront rivals, critics, governments or any group it felt could threaten it. A classic example was the company’s successful lobbying of the U.S. Congress to continually change obscure provisions in the tax code that would yield billions in savings. “A sardonic line among ExxonMobil lobbyists in the Washington office held that the corporation’s number-one issue of concern was taxation; its number two-issue was tax; its number-three issue was tax; and its number four-issue varied from year to year,” Coll writes. The number-four issue that quickly became as important as taxes — and that did not change from year to year — was ExxonMobil’s crusade against efforts to lower carbon emissions. The company aggressively fought initiatives aimed at slowing the increase of global temperatures caused by the burning of fossil fuels. It did everything from funding congressional campaigns to supporting think-tanks, “climate coalitions” and so-called experts who would spread doubts about the science behind global-warming concerns. It did not matter that these “experts” were often not climate scientists, Coll notes. “The books authored by members of this movement included titles such as ‘Red Hot Lies: How Global Warming Alarmists Use Threats, Fraud and Deception To Keep You Misinformed’ and ‘The Global Warming Deception: How a Secret Elite Plans to Bankrupt America and Steal Your Freedom.’ ” At the 2000 annual meeting of ExxonMobil shareholders, an activist confronted Raymond and demanded a long-term solution to global warming. “If the data were compelling I

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A compelling plan for Iranian talks

authors propose special procedures for dual-use technologies that are near the dividing line. A big selling point for the Iranians is that this approach is based on the pledge by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei that Iran won’t build nuclear weapons. Khamenei’s most explicit statement came on state television in February: “Iran is not after nuclear weapons because the Islamic Republic, logically, religiously and theoretically, considers the possession of nuclear weapons a grave sin and believes the proliferation of such weapons is senseless, destructive and dangerous.” President Obama sent a back-channel communication to Khamenei in March that his fatwa banning nuclear weapons would be a good starting point for negotiations. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivered the message when he met Khamenei on March 29. Undersecretary of State Wendy Sherman reiterated Obama’s theme during the first round of negotiations with the Iranians in Istanbul on April 14. So how could Iran fulfill this pledge in a way that reassures Israel and other nations that fear a nuclear-armed Iran? The Carnegie experts propose a red-yellow-green system, like a nuclear traffic light. In the “green” approved category would be nuclear power plants, medical research reactors and basic academic and scientific research. Forbidden “red” activities would be those directly related to weaponization, such as warhead design and procurement of items used in making and testing bombs. The “yellow” dual-use activities would be the trickiest problem, and the firewall would have to be carefully constructed. Some enrichment of uranium might be permitted, for example, if it were verifiably limited below 5 percent — so it could be used for only peaceful purposes. So-called “neutron triggers” would be banned, since they could be used to initiate a bomb’s explosion, except for those configured for oil exploration, which would be supplied to Iran. Any real reduction of tensions with Iran will also require greater openness and transparency about past as well as present activities, so that each side is confident it isn’t being cheated, and that its basic security hasn’t been compromised. That’s part of the Carnegie proposal, too. “This approach is not a zero-sum game,” argue Perkovich and Levite. “It would require commitments and concessions from both sides.” And by defining the activities that are part of building a nuclear weapon, it would fill a gap in the existing Non-Proliferation Treaty — and could be applied to other nations, not just Iran. The negotiations that

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The triage commander: Gen. John Allen hastily transforming U.S. mission in Afghanistan

a night — and he sets aside several hours each week “to think about big ideas.” When he was a brigadier general, he told Naval Academy students in a letter that he had been profoundly affected by reading classic military historians, among them Stephen Ambrose, John Keegan and Barbara Tuchman. “If my house were on fire and we were all running for our lives,” he wrote, “I would first save my family, and then all my volumes by these writers.” He has not yet informed Obama, who has indicated that he wants to keep withdrawing forces next year, how many troops he believes should stay in Afghanistan through 2013, but he is not digging in his boots to maintain all of the 68,000 troops that will remain after the current drawdown phase is completed at the end of September. By the end of the year, he predicted, “we could find that the operational environment for ’13 could be pretty significantly different,” although he said he will still need Special Operations forces, trainers for the Afghan troops and some conventional units to operate in areas not yet ready for transfer to Afghan control. It is a very different method from that taken by Petraeus, who sought to push Obama, during war cabinet discussions in 2011, to delay the drawdown until the end of this year so that U.S. forces could continue large-scale counterinsurgency missions. Petraeus failed. But Allen did manage to persuade Obama, in private discussions, not to announce any additional troop cuts until he provides a range of options to the White House in late fall. To those in the two-story yellow building that houses the NATO headquarters in Kabul, Allen’s approach to the troop reductions reflects his leadership style. Under Petraeus, “it was much more of a one-man show. There was much less oxygen for debate,” said a senior NATO official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the two generals. “John Allen listens a lot more carefully to what people are saying to him.” When Allen arrived in Kabul last July, the U.S. and NATO war plan called for a gradual transition of territory to Afghan control by the end of 2014, the point at which NATO’s combat mission will end. Based on the assumption that the United States would maintain substantial combat power in the country until then, the strategy envisaged the most violent, Taliban-saturated

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Robert J. Hoage, spokesman for National Zoo, dies at 66

Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville. He had complications from amyloidosis, a disease of the blood and bone marrow, his son Neal Hoage said. Dr. Hoage joined the staff at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Zoological Park in 1974 as a researcher. He participated in studies of wild animals around the world. He became chief of the office of public affairs in 1981 and served in that capacity until retiring in 2003. He also taught animal behavior and ecology at colleges, including Montgomery College and Prince George’s Community College. Robert Jay Hoage was born Jan. 30, 1946, in Washington. He was a 1964 graduate of Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and a 1969 graduate of the University of Maryland. At the University of Pittsburgh, he received a master’s degree in anthropology in 1971 and a doctorate in biological anthropology and primatology in 1978. Robert J. Hoage was former director of public affairs for the National Zoo. (FAMILY PHOTO) As a researcher, his subjects of study included an endangered South American monkey. While working at the National Zoo, he received a grant from the Fish and Wildlife Service to explore the establishment of a tropical primate studies program at several U.S. universities. As the National Zoo’s chief spokesman, his duties included explanations of the zoo’s conservation and scientific work. He announced hatchings of Komodo dragons and Micronesian kingfishers and such research breakthroughs as artificial insemination in cheetahs, pandas and elephants. He also discussed such unusual events as the death of a transient mental patient who in 1995 was mauled by lions after entering the lion enclosure. Dr. Hoage produced eight symposia, with speakers from scientific organizations and academic institutions. He edited and coordinated five volumes stemming from the symposia. After retiring from the National Zoo, he taught until this year at Notre Dame of Maryland University in Baltimore. In retirement, he spent time on the Chesapeake Bay on a motor cruiser. He was a resident of Pasadena in Anne Arundel County. His first marriage, to Carole Meininger, ended in divorce. His second wife, Patricia Pendergast, whom he married in 1976, died in 2010. Survivors include a son from his first marriage, Christopher Hoage of Millersville; two sons from his second marriage, Neal Hoage of Silver Spring and Kevin Hoage of Pasadena; a stepdaughter, Theresa Yost of Poolesville; two brothers, James Hoage of Severna Park and Donald Hoage of Kensington; five grandchildren; and a great-granddaughter.

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Foreign banks freezing out U.S. millionaires

who live elsewhere face obstacles. Before Fatca, U.S. citizens in Bangkok or Manila could find investment opportunities through non-U.S. banks such as HSBC. Now their only option is to fly to cities where U.S. firms operate. Limited choices If Americans choose to bank with a non-U.S. firm such as HSBC, their investment choices are limited. At the HSBC branch in the bank’s Asia regional headquarters in Hong Kong, Americans can hold only savings deposits. They’re prohibited from opening accounts to trade local stocks or buy products available to non-U.S. customers, including 45 equity funds investing in China or other geographies and industries. There’s only one comparable emerging-markets equity option available on HSBC’s U.S.-based investors’ Web site. Financial institutions that choose not to accept American customers still must determine whether new or existing clients are “U.S. persons,“ in order to comply with Fatca, according to Michael Brevetta, director of U.S. tax consulting at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Singapore. The definition includes citizens, green-card holders and non-Americans deemed U.S. residents by being present in the country for at least 183 days over a three-year period, which makes them subject to U.S. tax on their worldwide income, according to the IRS. The compliance costs for banks, asset managers and insurance companies “could stretch into the billions of dollars,” Brevetta said. Private-banking firms in Hong Kong and Singapore already have operating costs between 88 percent and 90 percent of their revenue, compared with 70 percent at Swiss banks, PricewaterhouseCoopers estimated in a September report. Penalties for not complying will be stiff. Non-U.S. firms that don’t make required disclosures will be subject to 30 percent withholding of certain dividends, interest or proceeds from the sale of assets they or their customers receive from U.S. sources, according to Baker & McKenzie’s Weisman, who has conducted workshops and seminars on the proposed rules for current and potential clients in Hong Kong and Singapore. “Overwhelmingly, financial institutions outside the U.S. don’t like it, for obvious reasons,” Weisman said, calling the withholding tax a “stick” the U.S. is wielding. “The U.S. is outsourcing a tax-compliance function, which is enormously expensive.” Renouncing citizenship Americans who don’t comply with Fatca are deemed “recalcitrant,” and income they receive from U.S. sources also is subject to a 30 percent withholding tax, said Jason Choi, a Singapore-based tax lawyer with Latham & Watkins. Renouncing citizenship is an option chosen by increasing numbers of Americans. A record

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Philadelphia Orchestra at Strathmore

Philadelphia Orchestra conductor Charles Dutoit. (Chris Lee/Courtesy of the Philadelphia Orchestra) In these days of increasingly internationalized and homogenized orchestral playing, we sometimes have to remind ourselves that the great orchestras of the world once possessed sonorities so uniquely their own that they were instantly recognizable. The Philadelphia Orchestra, which played a WPAS concert at Strathmore Hall on Friday under its chief conductor, Charles Dutoit, was renowned during much of the last century for its ultra-saturated string tone. It was a sound cultivated by music directors Leopold Stokowski and Eugene Ormandy, exaggerated by the old Academy of Music’s thick acoustics and beefed-up on its Columbia recordings. Recent decades have seen the Philadelphians leave behind that singularly lush string sound, as they’ve become a lither and more versatile ensemble. But there were moments Friday in certain phrases — such as the opening of the second movement of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 and the expansively lyrical moments in the first movement of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto — when that decadently rich, old style returned. It was a pleasure to hear. But what was even more striking about those famous strings was how silken and luminous they sounded and how subtly responsive they were to Dutoit’s interpretive urgings. Dutoit — who has a decades-long relationship with this orchestra — is above all a scrupulous colorist, and he exploited the Shostakovich for its often subtle range of hues. There was drama, to be sure, in his reading of the symphony, as well as a succession of vivid incidents. But tension wasn’t always palpable, and the composer’s dark-night-of-the-soul angst was significantly missing. The first movement’s opening chords were more yearning than trenchant, and the largo was a relatively dry-eyed affair; the sonorities he elicited emphasized beauty over tragic weight. That meant a welcome lack of militaristic hectoring, but the reading felt a shade cosmopolitan for material of such enthusiastic brashness. Even with a reduced complement of strings in the Mendelssohn, the violins displayed a notable sheen, and the mellowness of the cellos was matched by eloquent wind and brass playing. Dutoit did a lovely job of blending the sectional voices and provided a comfortable carpet of sound to set off his young violin soloist, James Ehnes. Ehnes produced a handsome, keenly focused tone and delivered the piece with athletic technique, a fluidly even execution of the arpeggiated chords in the opening-movement cadenza, and exquisitely floated

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Music review: Great Noise Ensemble in concert at the Atlas Performing Arts Center

Great Noise Ensemble has earned a reputation as an ambitious fixture of Washington’s new-music scene. (Kate Kress/Great Noise Ensemble) Although Great Noise Ensemble has earned a reputation as an ambitious fixture of Washington’s new music scene, its performances and repertoire choices vary in quality. Friday night’s concert inaugurated the group’s residency at the Atlas Performing Arts Center and was themed after the opening piece, Randall Woolf’s “Urban Legends,” which appealed more in theory than in practice. That Woolf combined taped rappers with chamber orchestra wasn’t problematic — classical and hip-hop mergers aren’t unusual. But the accompaniment, in design and performance, was unimaginatively matched to the powerful, socially conscious texts. There was also unevenness to Andrew Simpson’s Double Concerto (for violin and guitar). Playing up the folk and classical sides of both instruments was a good idea, but by piling on too many styles and textures, the concerto lost focus. The guitar, barely audible throughout, remained faceless. Only the second movement, infused by flamenco elements and energetic playing by violinist Andrea Vercoe, satisfied. Fortunately, the ensemble roared back after intermission with two strong pieces and performances. David Smooke’s “Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death,” inspired by crime scene dioramas, is essentially a mischievous, 15-minute concerto for toy piano. The composer sat at his tiny blood-red instrument, producing a Pandora’s box of eerie sounds by bowing (threading a single string through its guts) and pawing the insides, as if scratching an itch. A foghorn tolled eerily in the bassoon, while winds and strings creaked. Stefan Freund’s confidently scored “Three Urban Images” conjured scenes from a seedy Rochester, N.Y., neighborhood. Jolts of jazzy rhythms fueled the outer movements, where percussionist Chris DeChiara shined. The central panel sported a film noir feel, thanks to effective ensemble playing and the evocative bassoon of Alan Michels. Freund achieved an impressive American, almost Bernstein-like sound. Without doubt, the young Great Noise Ensemble is unafraid of risks. And for that, music lovers in Washington can be thankful.

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“Total barbarity” as Mexican cartel dumps 49 torsos along highway

retaliation for the murder of 23 of the cartel’s members in the border city of Nuevo Laredo this month. Those victims were found ­May 4, with nine hung from a bridge in the center of town and the 14 severed heads of the others left in coolers outside city hall. “All of these acts are part of a media strategy to get attention,” said Javier Treviño, the former lieutenant governor of Nuevo Leon. Identifying the dead found Sunday will be difficult given the absence of identifying features, Mexican officials said, but they seemed eager to suggest that the 49 were not likely to have been innocent victims. Some of the torsos had tattoos of Santa Muerte, or Saint Death, the iconic grim-reaper figure that is worshiped widely in Mexico’s criminal underworld, they said. Forensic work will also be difficult because the victims appeared to have been dead at least 48 hours, and many of their bodies were covered in mud and dust. The site where they were dumped is near the tiny town of San Juan, about 75 miles south of the U.S. border town of Roma, Tex. Authorities searched the area and found no other victims, Domene said, emphasizing the possibility that the dead were killed in another state or location and driven to the site to be dumped. “They left them there so they would be seen,” he said. None of the torsos had bullet wounds, and the bodies appeared to have been transported along the unpaved back roads that wind among local farms and ranches, Domene said. A large deployment of Mexican federal police and soldiers was sent to search the area. Mexico’s presidential candidates have campaigned in the area on pledges that they will halt the violence that has turned Monterrey, the once-safe industrial capital of northern Mexico, into a gangster horror show. An arson attack carried out by Zetas gunmen on a casino in the city killed 52 in August. Monterrey’s renowned business community has been besieged by kidnappers and extortionists, and the threat to the city is so great that it risks becoming a drag on the entire Mexican economy, experts warn. More world news coverage: - Notable incidents of violence, mass graves in Mexico over the past year - Greece appears headed to new elections as talks stall - Ex-Taliban leader-turned peace negotiator shot dead - Read more headlines from around the world

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Obama’s misguided wooing of an uninterested Putin

Obama nevertheless congratulated Putin on an election that international observers said was neither free nor fair. He has made repeal of the 1974 Jackson-Vanik amendment, which limits U.S. trade with Russia, a priority in Congress this spring. What’s striking about this strategy is its disregard for the biggest foreign-policy lesson of Obama’s first term. The Arab Spring showed that “engagement” with autocratic leaders isn’t wise if their grip is slipping. With thousands of opposition demonstrators roaming the streets of Moscow and clashing with his security forces, Putin looks more than a little like Hosni Mubarak or Bashar al-Assad when Obama was courting them three years ago: For now he’s in control — but his governing model is broken, and his country is beginning to turn on him. A little bet-hedging would seem to be in order, particularly given Putin’s stiffing of a presidential invitation. That’s why the most wrongheaded piece of the administration’s policy may be its continuing and stubborn opposition to the “Magnitsky bill” — a piece of legislation, authored by Democrats, that aims to restore human rights to the center of U.S.-Russian relations. Sergei Magnitsky This sanction strikes at the heart of the web of corruption around Putin. Moscow’s bureaucratic mafiosi rely heavily on foreign bank accounts; they vacation in France, send their children to U.S. colleges and take refuge in London when they fall from Putin’s favor. The fear and loathing provoked in Moscow by the bill is encapsulated by item No. 3 on Putin’s new priority list: “Work actively on preventing unilateral extraterritorial sanctions by the U.S. against Russian legal entities and individuals.” Incredibly, Obama has sided with Putin against Congress. His lobbyists have tried repeatedly to block the bill, even though it has become key to passing the trade legislation Obama wants. As the measure moved toward a vote in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last month, senior White House and State Department officials demanded that it be postponed until after Putin’s visit to Camp David. Now that Putin has canceled, maybe it’s time to put human rights in Russia back on the agenda. diehlj@washpost.com Read more about this issue: David J. Kramer and Robert Kagan: Replace Jackson-Vanik with the Magnitsky bill Ben Cardin: Accountability for Sergei Magnitsky’s killers Jennifer Rubin: Time to increase pressure on Putin The Post’s View: Press the Putin regime on human rights Masha Lipman: Russia’s strongman is losing his grip

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Arlington’s Claire Hallissey will run marathon for British Olympic team

the junior ranks.” Back in 2005, when London was awarded the 2012 Summer Games, Hallissey trained with and occasionally competed for running clubs, but it was hardly serious business. She did, though, enjoy challenging herself. And running provided a break from her heady research into meningitis. As she moved beyond the 800- and 1,500-meter races she ran in her youth, attempting 3,000 and 5,000 races on the track, then 5K and 10K road races, she found surprising gratification: She did better, relatively speaking, as the races grew longer. A year after running her first 10K road race in 2004, she decided to try a half-marathon. In the 2005 Grunty Fen Half Marathon just north of Cambridge, where she earned her undegraduate degree, she finished second in 85:04. “It was more just a natural progression as I worked my way up through the distances,” Hallissey said. “As the races got longer, I did comparatively better in relation to other people.” After turning in her thesis and settling in Virginia, Hallissey decided to run the 2010 Cherry Blossom 10-miler here in Washington, her first road race in the United States. She finished eighth in 54:57. She ran a host of other small races throughout the region, and won many of them, including the Capital Crescent 5k in Bethesda (16:46), the Jingle All the Way 10K in Washington (35:17) and the Leesburg 10K (33:54). She met George Buckheit, the coach at the Capital Area Runners training group, at an event, and joined his club. She logged laps around the track at Washington-Lee High in Arlington and went on long runs along the C&O Canal. In November, Hallissey decided to tackle her first marathon, wondering if her propensity for better performances at longer distances would extend to the grandest road race of all. She finished a respectable 18th in the New York City Marathon in 2:36.13. It was then that she and her husband began pondering her Olympic prospects. “That was a very, very good time,” Matt Hallissey said. “That’s when it kind of became possible.” The next year, she ran the Chicago marathon. Her finish in 2:29:27 convinced her she was seriously in the mix for an Olympic spot. With her doctoral research out of the way, she could put all of her attention into that new goal. “I’ve wondered what [her] limit would be,” Matt Hallissey said. “There’s hasn’t been one yet.”

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U.S. trains African soldiers for Somalia mission

Hawk Down” debacle. Thanks to an influx of U.S. aid and equipment, the Ugandan military has been willing to step into the breach. Ugandan officials have pledged to increase their forces in Somalia to 8,000 troops, the largest foreign contingent (Kenya and Burundi are the other major players, each contributing about 4,500 troops). U.S. officials praised the Ugandans’ performance and military skills. “They’re a very professional army,” said Maj. Albert Conley, deputy chief of the office of security cooperation for the U.S. military in Uganda. “I’ve never had a discussion on Clausewitzian theory with an African military officer before, but I have here.” Ugandan military officials said they have had no trouble finding recruits willing to go to Somalia, despite the dangers. “It has stepped up our credibility in the region, and any soldier would be very proud to be part of the mission,” said Col. J.B. Ruhesi, the Ugandan commander of the Singo training camp. Financial incentives also play a major role. The African Union pays troops about $1,000 a month to serve in Somalia — quintuple the usual salaries for many enlisted Ugandan soldiers. Ugandan military officials said about 80 of their troops have been killed in Somalia since 2007, although analysts suspect the number of casualties has been far higher. A leading cause of death for the African Union troops in Somalia has been homemade bombs — al-Shabab’s weapon of choice. U.S. trainers said they recently upgraded their course of instruction to help recruits learn how to avoid the explosives. To that end, the Defense Department recently sent about 20 Marines to the Singo training camp to provide specialized instruction in combat medicine and bomb detection. Although the Marines have never fought in Somalia, they have years of experience dealing with homemade bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan “When it comes to IEDs, there’s really nothing new under the sun,” said Marine Staff Sgt. Neal Fischer, referring to improvised explosive devices, the military’s term for rudimentary bombs. Fischer acknowledged that many of the Ugandan recruits are “raw” but said they were fast learners. “We’re looking to enhance their mobility in the field,” he said. “They’re here to learn this skill set so they can go back to Somalia.” More world news coverage: - 49 torsos found along Mexican highway - Greece’s new elections delay talks - Russian protesters’ peaceful stroll - Read more headlines from around the world

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Global warming threatens pine forests, forcing federal officials to shift strategy

— are particularly vulnerable to climate change. Warmer temperatures have allowed native beetles to grow and feed on trees at a faster rate. Water deprivation and drought can also hurt them, and they can be crowded out by other tree species migrating to higher altitudes. “We know the consequences of doing nothing,” said Forest Service research ecologist Anna Schoettle, looking out from Rainbow Curve at a vista boasting both healthy conifers and ones that had turned red and gray after beetle infestations. “We have a threat we can’t ignore.” Diana Tomback, a biology professor at the University of Colorado at Denver who directs the Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation, started studying whitebark as a graduate student in the 1970s. She was the first to discover that the tree depended on the diminutive Clark’s nutcracker to disperse its seeds: the bird pries seeds from whitebark cones and transports them in its throat pouch, depositing as many as 35,000 seeds in 30,000sites in a single season. Now, some regions of the Northern Rockies have experienced an 80 percent die-off of whitebark pines, and the Natural Resource Defense Council projects that between 80 and 100 percent of remaining trees in some areas will be killed by mountain pine beetles, whitepine blister rust or a combination of the two. The NRDC has petitioned to list the tree as an endangered species. “Seeing what’s happened to the whitebark pine really shakes you up,” Tomback said, adding that scientists and officials need to be “strategic” if they want to protect some of the remaining conifers growing near mountain tops. “There is certainly nothing that’s going to work to protect millions of acres of these high-elevation trees.” That is why federal officials are singling out trees such as the limber pine at the Beaver Ponds area, attaching a pouch filled with the chemical compound verbenone to ward off beetles. Verbenone mimics the scent of an insect pheromone, giving off a false signal that the tree has already suffered a mass attack, prompting the beetles to move on. “It’s like we draw them in and we tell them, ‘The hotel’s full,’ ” said Jeff Witcosky, a Forest Service entomologist in Lakewood, Colo. The West’s beetle epidemic may be beginning to wane, federal officials said, giving scientists the time they need to figure out how best to help the forest adapt to future changes.Mountain pine beetles killed 8.8 million acres

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Researchers race to make a long-lasting battery for cellphones and other devices

a surge of new configurations and chemistry that may solve some of our low-battery woes, said Esther Takeuchi, a professor of advanced power systems at the State University of New York at Buffalo. “With the combination of new materials, new design concepts, and new production and manufacturing methodologies, I believe we will get there,” she said. The race is on Takeuchi said the current gold standard for batteries is lithium-ion, which was commercialized more than 20 years ago and is now commonly found in computers, camcorders and cellphones. Some researchers are trying to pack more power into existing lithium-ion cells; others are looking to incorporate such elements as sulfur, zinc, magnesium and even air into new types of batteries. But while the race is on to make this quantum leap, some observers caution that improvements will take longer than the big jumps in memory and speed that have occurred in the computer industry roughly every 18 months. “If you want to talk about a tenfold improvement, it might be a while,” said John Gartner, senior research analyst at Pike Research in Boulder, Colo. “But we are going to see consistent improvements across the board.” Batteries work In the 20th century, heavy but long-lasting lead-acid batteries were developed for vehicles, while portable yet disposable alkaline batteries were commercialized for flashlights, smoke detectors and almost everything else. Improvements to rechargeable lithium-ion batteries appear to have the most promise, at least right now. These batteries, used in most consumer electronics, including smartphones and iPads, have a limited life span and charge capacity. But researchers say they can be made tremendously more efficient and long-lasting. Researchers at the University of Texas developed the first lithium-ion rechargeable battery in the early 1980s, And while today’s lithium-ion batteries last longer than older nickel-metal-hydride rechargeables, some experts say there’s plenty of room for improvement. “Lithium-ion is only at the halfway point of what’s theoretically possible,” said Dane Boysen, director of the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy battery program, which has awarded $36 million to 10 projects since 2010. One of the grantees, Envia Systems of Newark, Calif., said in February that it could now more than double the power stored in its rechargeable lithium-ion battery, thanks to its new manganese-based cathode and silicon-carbon anode. The claim was verified by the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Crane, Ind., a federal lab that evaluates engineering and electronics

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Researchers race to make a long-lasting battery for cellphones and other devices

to a few dozen candidates, while Toyota reported in August that it is using magnesium, sulfur and a special electrolyte. Up in the air Then there are lithium-air batteries, which use carbon for their cathodes instead of metal oxides. Carbon is lighter and reacts with oxygen in the air to produce an electrical current. Although such a battery promises a 1,000-mile range for electric cars, engineers haven’t yet figured out how to make it recharge properly, according to New Scientist magazine. Lithium can also have issues. It ignites in contact with moist air. But IBM researchers in California and Switzerland reported this year that they have solved a key problem by finding a way to get rid of water vapor. IBM hopes to have a prototype lithium-air car battery by 2013, with commercialization by 2020. Hitting a home run in battery technology takes decades, not just years, of research, Boysen said. “In batteries, every chemistry is different,” he noted. “Every battery will need a different manufacturing infrastructure. Batteries are a much harder problem to solve” than other technologies, such as building faster computers or new kinds of electronics, Boysen said. In fact, two battery companies have had trouble commercializing their rechargeable lithium-ion battery technology, even after getting government help. Ener1 filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January after its main customer, a Norweigan electric car manufacturer, went under. Ener1 had received $118 million in federal stimulus funds. A123 Systems recently said that it had to replace some faulty batteries in the new Fisker Automotive luxury electric plug-in vehicles. The company received $249.1 million in federal funding in 2009. Despite the potential for failure, some entrepreneurs just won’t give up. Nowhere is that more clear than in the track record of PolyPlus, which has been hunting for the holy grail of battery technology, lithium-air and lithium-water batteries, since the early 1990s. After pursuing lithium-sulfur for years, the company switched to lithium-air in 2003. PolyPlus chief executive Steve Visco is finally building a pilot manufacturing plant in Berkeley, Calif., not far from the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, where he works as a fuel cell researcher. He expects to have the first lithium-seawater batteries available in two years; they will power long-distance probes that cruise ocean currents and send back oceanographic data to help scientists make climate predictions. The next application will be lithium-air battery pouches that can be inserted into soldiers’ radios. It

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Smoking marijuana can help ease symptoms of multiple sclerosis, study suggests

MEDICAL MARIJUANA Marijuana may help relieve muscle tightness linked to multiple sclerosis THE QUESTION THIS STUDY WHO MAY BE AFFECTED? CAVEATS FIND THIS STUDY LEARN MORE ABOUT — Linda Searing The research described in Quick Study comes from credible, peer-reviewed journals. Nonetheless, conclusive evidence about a treatment's effectiveness is rarely found in a single study. Anyone considering changing or beginning treatment of any kind should consult with a physician.

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Chemotherapy via pills can be costly; health plans are slow to cover new drugs

Cancer treatment is changing: Increasingly, pills are the drug of choice rather than intravenous chemotherapy that drips into a patient’s vein. In contrast to conventional IV chemotherapy, which often kills both cancer and healthy cells alike, many of the new oral oncology drugs target specific biologic processes in cancer cells and block their growth. In addition to being highly effective, they’re convenient, especially for patients who live far from a treatment facility. And the trend is accelerating. At least 25 percent of the drugs in the oncology pipeline are oral medications. Health plans, however, have been slow to adjust to the change. People who get traditional IV chemotherapy on an outpatient basis often pay a flat co-payment that covers the drug as well as the cost of administering it. Annual out-of-pocket costs are also typically capped. Oral anti-cancer medications, on the other hand, are generally considered a pharmacy benefit. Instead of a co-payment, plan members often pay a percentage of the drugs’ cost — up to 50 percent, in some cases — with no annual out-of-pocket limit. And these drugs are expensive, often costing tens of thousands of dollars a year. In recent years, states have stepped in to address the problem. Since 2007, 19 states and the District have passed laws requiring insurers to provide coverage for oral cancer drugs that is equivalent to infusion drugs, according to the National Patient Advocate Foundation. Five states, including Virginia and Maryland, have passed laws in 2012 alone, and others are considering proposals, according to advocacy groups. Improved access? Patient advocates say these oral oncology parity laws, as they are called, give patients more-affordable access to the best treatment available. “Some of these drugs work when nothing else does,” says Len Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society. “But if a patient needs a new targeted therapy like [the lung cancer drug] Tarceva, he may end up paying a substantially higher percentage of the cost than he would have had there been a comparable intravenous drug.” There is no oral oncology parity law in California, where Robert Adler received a diagnosis of multiple myeloma in 2006. In 2009, his doctor recommended that Adler, now 55, begin using the oral anti-cancer drug Revlimid, which is recommended for multiple myeloma patients who have been through at least one other therapy. When the pharmacist called to tell Adler his plan had approved

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How to save horseshoe crabs and red knot birds

Regarding the May 12 front-page article “A G-rated spring fling”: Readers should know that the horseshoe crab’s future remains uncertain, as does that of the red knot and other shorebird species dependent upon excess crab eggs for food. In 2010, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reaffirmed that the red knot warranted listing under the Endangered Species Act and concluded that “the threats, in particular the modification of habitat through harvesting of horseshoe crabs, are severe enough to put the viability of the knot at substantial risk.” While the crab population has stabilized over the past six to seven years, it is down significantly from 20 years ago, and knot populations have collapsed due to crab overharvesting for conch and eel bait. Maryland now allows the killing of more horseshoe crabs than any other state — 167,000 in 2011. Meanwhile, the Maine-to-Florida harvest rose to 651,274, a 9.2 percent increase over the 2010 figure. The medical harvesting of crabs — their blood is used in a test to ensure the purity of injectable drugs — has skyrocketed to 549,000. The estimated mortality rate during the harvesting is as high as 30 percent. Despite concerns raised by the conservation community, no actions to further protect the crabs have been taken by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the council responsible for managing the crab population along the Atlantic coast. We join the call by leading conservation groups for a full moratorium on all bait harvesting and for more restrictions to reduce mortality caused by medical harvesting. A moratorium will spur the use of a medical-testing substitute and a synthetic bait for conch pots, the biggest uses of the crabs. Colin Rees, Anne Arundel The writer is president of the Anne Arundel Bird Club.

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Opera review: ‘Samson et Dalila,’ by the Washington Concert Opera

Conductor Antony Walker, Michelle DeYoung and Greer Grimsley in the Washington Concert Opera performance of “Samson et Dalila.” (Stan Engebretson/Washington Concert Opera) For an opera about an action hero, Camille Saint-Saens’s “Samson et Dalila” is remarkably action-free: Even the climactic moment when Delilah shears the hero’s hair takes place offstage. It’s open to question whether its stasis makes it better suited to a concert performance than some other operas, or whether it needs a little stage business — costumes, sets — to help liven things up. The Washington Concert Opera took the gamble Saturday night by offering it in concert format under Antony Walker, albeit with at least one piece of real-life visual enhancement: The male leads, Frank Poretta and Greer Grimsley, both had genuine ponytails. Had Michelle DeYoung’s Delilah dared to actually clip Poretta’s hair, we would have ventured into the territory of verismo. Instead, the terrain was the vaguely Oriental world of Saint-Saens’s big, sensuous sound — a sound that was a little beyond the abilities of the Washington Concert Opera Orchestra to fully realize in the confines of Lisner Auditorium, despite Walker’s best efforts. Walker is one of those marvelous musicians who throws himself heart and soul into everything he does. Watching him conduct the Bacchanale, the priests’ dance in the final act, you could almost have believed it was a piece of significant music rather than a pops-concert potboiler — almost, but not quite. The orchestra did quite well, but you want a slightly richer sound to convey this languid, dreamy music. And you want slightly richer voices. The WCO was banking on Brandon Jovanovich, a rising young tenor sensation and Richard Tucker Award winner, who’s been moving into ever heavier repertory. Jovanovich, alas, wound up with swollen vocal cords at the end of his successful run in Dallas’s “Don Carlo,” and he is on doctor’s orders for full vocal rest — meaning he canceled not only “Samson” but also a scheduled appearance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra later this month. This left Poretta, already heard here this season in Washington National Opera’s “Tosca,” a big burly presence with a slightly less burly voice. (His performances often leave me with a feeling of respect for hard work honorably done, but seldom leave me excited.) Grimsley, a Wagnerian, assailed the High Priest’s role with a big, wiry sound to match his tall, wiry body, cutting through the

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Chat

Almost every week can be beer week Beer weeks, celebrations that showcase an area’s beer culture and brews, have become a global trend. The Brookston Beer Bulletin lists nearly 100 such weeks. In our region, Frederick Beer Week in — you guessed it — Frederick kicked off on Saturday. Highlights include the Great FBW Scavenger Hunt on Friday and a FirkinFest set for noon on Saturday at Stillpoint Farm in Mount Airy, soon to become the site of the Milkhouse Brewery at Stillpoint Farm. American Craft Beer Week, a promotion of the Colorado-based Brewers Association, started Monday and encompasses all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia. It’s not too early to start planning for DC Beer Week, which is scheduled to unfold Aug.12-18. Six local breweries have announced they’ll brew a Belgian-style farmhouse ale to mark the event. Their efforts will then be blended into a single brew, which will be served from kegs and casks throughout the week. Tickets for the opening extravaganza — a brews cruise along the Potomac on the luxury yacht Odyssey — go on sale Wednesday at $100 a pop at dcbeerweek.net. — Greg Kitsock All We Can Eat voices.washingtonpost.com/allwecaneat

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Three books on illegal, or not, drugs

The American discourse on narcotics has always been more complex than “Just say no,” but in recent years it has reached new depths of murkiness. Support for medical marijuana (which is legally grown and sold in many states, depending on what day of the week it is) runs headlong into old fears about addiction, violence and social unrest. Into these muddy waters plunge three new books. Pot, Inc. Not so much Mark Haskell Smith, author of Heart of Dankness (Broadway; paperback, $14). He’s a fiending, feverish, globe-trotting knight questing in search of the Holy Grail of highs, a “diggity dank” bud that produces a super-charged form of cannabis-driven higher consciousness. Smith’s book runs parallel to Campbell’s in a number of places: Both authors, for example, recount the somewhat strained and exaggerated doctor consultations they needed to get medical marijuana licenses. But “Heart of Dankness” will speak more to the hard core of THC culture. Coverage of the Cannabis Cup competition, for example, is anthropology with limited appeal outside the circles that already follow the annual event in Amsterdam. Opium: Reality’s Dark Dream Norton is a video blogger for chow.com and editor of the Heavy Table, a Minneapolis-based journal of food and drink.

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Montgomery County Animal Watch

These were among the cases received by the Montgomery County Animal Services Division. For information on shelter hours and location, adoption and licensing procedures, rabies clinics and low-cost neutering, call 240-773-5960. Lost and blind dog still has bite Fox stays put on the porch: Rabies clinic Pets available for adoption Dogs, cats and other pets will be available through the Montgomery County Humane Society at the following locations. To confirm the schedule, call 240-773-5966 or visit www.mchumane.org. Germantown Shelter has adoptable cats Gaithersburg Germantown — Compiled by Lisa M. Bolton

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D.C., Maryland and Virginia health code violations

These food establishments were closed because of health code violations. The list, compiled from health department reports, reflects actions taken by the departments. THE DISTRICT Don Pepe Cash and Carry 300 Morse St. NE Food service closed May 7 for failure to minimize vermin. Reopened the next day. Hamilton Liquors 5205 Georgia Ave. NW Closed May 3 for operating without hot water. Reopened the next day. Merry’s Kitchen Carryout 2929 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE Closed May 3 for gross unsanitary conditions. Reopened the next day. Umi Japanese Cuisine 2625 Connecticut Ave. NW Closed May 9 for failure to minimize vermin. Reopened the next day. MARYLAND Little Far East II 26043 Ridge Rd., Damascus Closed May 2 for selling adulterated food products, an insect infestation and lacking a rear door. Reopened the next day. VIRGINIA Dave and Chung’s 362 S. Pickett St., Alexandria Closed May 7 for a stove fire and fire extinguisher discharge. Reopened the next day. Minerva Indian Cuisine 2443-G1 Centreville Rd., Herndon Closed May 3 for operating without refrigeration. Reopened the same day. Moby Dick House of Kabob 5900 Kingstowne Towne Center, Alexandria Closed May 1 for operating without refrigeration. Reopened the same day. — Compiled by Terence McArdle

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D.C. news in brief

Weeds, tall grass restricted through Oct. 31; fines possible Seasonal prohibitions on grass and weed growth in the District are in effect through Oct. 31. Weeds must be cut before the seventh day of growth. Property owners who allow grass or weeds to grow higher than 10 inches can be fined by Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs. Failure to comply can result in the agency clearing the weeds at the owner’s expense. Residents can report suspected violations at 202-442-9557 or e-mail dcra.housingcomplaints@dc.gov. Residents must provide an exact address. Free vaccinations for pets at Saturday health clinics The D.C. Department of Health has scheduled free pet vaccinations at clinics Saturdays. The pet clinics are from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Newark Street Dog Park, 39th and Newark streets NW; 1:30 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Upshur Recreation Center, 4300 Arkansas Ave. NW; 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. June 2, Ruth Webb School, 1375 Mount Olivet Rd. NE; 1:30 to 4 p.m. June 2, King Greenleaf Recreation Center, 201 N St. SW; and 9 to 11:30 a.m. June 16, Triangle Park, Minnesota Avenue and Croffut Place SE. Dogs must be leashed and cats secured in a carrier box. Pets must be accompanied by an adult and be three months or older to receive vaccinations. Owners should bring vaccination records. License fees are $15 for sterilized dogs; $50 for others. Fiesta Asia Street Fair will showcase culture, cuisine The Fiesta Asia Street Fair will be from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday along Pennsylvania Avenue between Third and Sixth streets NW. The festival will feature pan-Asian cuisine, music and dance, and exhibits of traditional and contemporary Asian crafts. It will include performances by Arayun, a Korean folk ensemble, the Charis Chorale of the Philippines and Red Flower, a Taiwanese pop group. For information, go to www.asiaheritagefoundation.org. Agency to hold symposium for seniors, caregivers Friday The D.C. Office on Aging is hosting a senior symposium from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday at the Park Hyatt Washington, 1201 24th St. NW. Seniors, caregivers and professionals will discuss issues such as health care, recreation and socialization, housing, caregiver support, options counseling and long-term care planning. Free continental breakfast and lunch will be provided for registered attendees. To register, call 202-535-1439 or e-mail monica.best@dc.gov. DDOT to discuss M Street transportation study The D.C. Department of Transportation is hosting a public meeting on the M Street SE/SW

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Tom Sietsema’s Spring Dining Guide 2012 Now Available

The Washington Post Magazine today presents the third annual Spring Dining Guide. In this issue, food critic Tom Sietsema visits 15 previously reviewed restaurants, several with new chefs. The Dining Guide is available online at http://www.washingtonpost.com/gog/best-bets/dining-guide/dining-guide-spring-2012,102675.html and in The Washington Post Magazine Sunday. Readers can now navigate the guide online in gallery format viewing a restaurant review and photo on the same page. Restaurants can also be sorted by cuisine, star-rating, price or location; readers can also see the restaurants on a map and get directions. Sietsema compares Founding Farmers to “Ishtar,” the box office failure. He also says the small plates still rule at Cork Wine Bar. Here are highlights of how some of the other restaurants stack up in 2012: ·Le Vieux Logis In 1996: Solid cooking with a bit of flair Again: Only fair ·Blue Duck Tavern In 2007: A fashionable tribute to farmers Now: When can I get back? ·Jaleo In 2011: Showing its age Now: At 19, va-va-voom! To read the Spring Dining Guide, visit http://www.washingtonpost.com/gog/best-bets/dining-guide/dining-guide-spring-2012,102675.html or pick up this Sunday’s Washington Post Magazine. Readers can also join Tom Sietsema for an online chat Wednesday, May 23 at 11am.

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Army probing PTSD diagnoses

diagnoses made by the military or the Department of Veterans Affairs. Service members with such diagnoses are entitled to a 50 percent disability rating, a level at which the military is responsible for considerable medical benefits after retirement. The Army is investigating whether the Lewis-McChord team used the cost of a PTSD diagnosis as a consideration in their evaluations, according to Murray’s office. Three officers have been placed on leave while the investigation continues, including Col. Dallas Homas, the hospital commander, and William Keppler, the head of the psychiatry team. A PowerPoint presentation that Keppler gave to staff members emphasized that every diagnosis of PTSD costs the military $1.5 million in health benefits and pension payments. Juliana Ellis-Billingsley, a member of the screening team, resigned in February. “I find that I can no longer work in a system that requires me to sacrifice my professional and moral principles to political expediency,” Ellis-Billingsley wrote in her resignation letter. Army leaders had told Murray that the problem was isolated, but the decision to order a nationwide review indicates otherwise, the senator said. “Reviewing our processes and policies will ensure that we apply an appropriate standard at every installation — one that is influenced only by the opinion and expertise of our medical professionals,” McHugh and Odierno said in a joint statement. Lewis-McChord, one of the largest military installations in the nation, has attracted attention in recent months because of several high-profile incidents. It is the home base for Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, accused in the massacre of 17 Afghan villagers in March, as well as four soldiers found guilty of charges in the killings of three unarmed Afghan civilians in 2010. (A fifth was found guilty on a related charge.) The Army-wide review is to be led by Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Lloyd Austin and Undersecretary of the Army Joseph Westphal. The review is meant to identify and correct problems in the Army’s approach to behavioral health diagnoses and disability evaluations, according to the statement released by the service. “We owe it to every soldier to ensure that he or she receives the care they need and deserve,” McHugh said. More national security coverage: - Obama executive order designed to help ensure Yemen’s stability - Syrian rebels get influx of arms with U.S. help - Panetta curtails F-22 flights after pilot blackouts - Read more of the latest national security news

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Prince George’s County Animal Watch

The following cases were received recently by the Prince George’s County Department of Environmental Resources Animal Management Group. Call 301-780-7200 for directions to the county animal shelter, hours of operation and adoption and licensing procedures. The shelter’s Web site is www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/der/amg. All walled in: Pet survives poisoning that claimed house’s occupants: Struggling cat: Bleeding turtle: Annapolis dog and cat adoption show: — Compiled by Jillian S. Sowah

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Anti-American rhetoric subsides in Russia

But even a stern reaction from the president, Urnov stresses, would probably be limited to talk. “Maybe I am too optimistic,” Urnov said, “but if we analyze his previous behavior, we see tough talk but rational behavior.” Divergence, convergence One certain flash point is the Magnitsky Law — backed by Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.), among others — which if enacted would freeze assets and bar Russian officials connected to human rights abuses from receiving U.S. visas. The congressional bill was named in memory of Sergei Magnitsky, a corruption-fighting lawyer who died in pretrial detention after he was accused of the crimes he uncovered. Russian officials have lobbied strenuously against the law and made it clear that they consider it provocative. In his decree on good relations with the United States, Putin referred to the Magnitsky bill, telling his Foreign Ministry “to work actively on preventing unilateral extraterritorial sanctions by the U.S. against Russian legal entities and individuals.” The bill has deep support among Putin critics here, who see it as a way of singling out wrongdoers among their countrymen without being anti-Russian. “The Magnitsky bill is a very good thing, and the U.S. should keep emphasizing that there is a difference between the Russian people and those in power,” said Dmitri Oreshkin, an organizer of a movement supporting fair elections. “This bill targets people who break the law, not ordinary Russians.” U.S. policy toward Russia should be tough but polite, Oreshkin said. The United States should avoid pronouncements about promoting democracy in Russia, he said, and emphasize educational and cultural exchanges that would give ordinary Russians direct knowledge of the United States. One of those encounters occurred this week, when jazz pianist Herbie Hancock performed in Moscow. The event was sponsored by the U.S. State Department through its American Seasons program, which has brought a number of American performers to Russia, beginning with the Alvin Ailey dancers last summer. The 1,700-seat International House of Music was well-filled, and the audience was knowledgeable and wildly appreciative. As she was leaving the venue after the performance, Inna Valentik, a 52-year-old Muscovite, frowned when reminded about all the anti-American allusions that had been filling the airwaves until recently. “I don’t like all of that, the way politics can divide us,” she said. “Here, listening to this music, you feel only happiness. It goes straight to the heart, and you feel the truth.”

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Egyptian presidential hopefuls travel across country in bid for votes

said of Aboul Fotouh. “I hope he doesn’t win.”. Sadiq said he wants Mubarak’s last prime minister, Ahmed Shafiq — who is seen by revolutionaries as an arm of the old regime and the favored candidate of the military rulers — to lead and finally stabilize Egypt after a year marked by bouts of violence, continual protests and a faltering economy. Seeking a liberal alternative A couple of days later, Aboul Fotouh’s arch rival on the campaign trail, Amr Moussa, the former Arab League chief and the liberal front-runner, was in the presidential suite of the Marriott Hotel, in the upscale Cairo district of Zamalek, being interviewed by the ultraconservative Islamic channel al-Nas. He was trying to reach out to puritanical Muslims who will probably vote for his Islamist competitors, reminding viewers that he is a Muslim and not against Islamists but that he believes in freedom of expression. Then he rushed downstairs to have lunch with more than 100 representatives of 42 Bedouin tribes. Moussa had spent weeks traveling around the country to win their endorsement and, with the lunch, they publicly offered their support. As Moussa stopped at each table to shake hands and greet tribal leaders with traditional kisses, they were already referring to him as “Mr. President.” As he settled onto the stage, a man jumped up from his seat to recite an impromptu poem. “Tomorrow, God willing, the command will be yours and you will be president of Egypt,” Mohammed Seif Mohammed said, before rushing up to the stage for a quick hug. Some of the tribesmen said they saw the former foreign minister as a source of stability. Most said he was the right man for this transitional phase, a face of the past and a man of experience at a time of deep uncertainty. After all, Mubarak wasn’t that bad, said Muftah Gibrany, a member of a Bedouin tribe. “Mubarak’s palace was 500 meters from where we live, and we used to salute him,” Gibrany said. “Now we have hope in Amr Moussa and God to solve our problems.” Special correspondents Ingy Hassieb and Haitham Mohamed contributed to this report. More world news coverage: - Chinese dissident case offers rare glimpse into how Chinese leadership operates - G-8 leaders agree on more spending to boost struggling European economy - Egyptian presidential hopefuls on campaign trail - Read more headlines from around the world

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On joint U.S.-Afghan mission, balancing suspicion and ambition

partnership after NATO personnel burned dozens of Korans on a military base, and after Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was charged with murdering 17 civilians in Kandahar province. The relationship in the field appears to have reached a stasis in which isolated betrayals don’t threaten to undermine broader progress, they say. That relationship has in Paktika become a transactional one, with Afghan forces dealing directly with Afghan villagers and Americans handling the operational logistics and much of the intelligence gathering. Spina is considered one of the most significant Taliban strongholds in the region — a common stopover for insurgents on their way to and from Pakistan. There is no regular U.S. or Afghan security presence in the village. It’s so unstable that even the district sub-governor — Spina’s ostensible conduit to the capital, Kabul — hasn’t visited in five years. He lives nearly 10 miles away. A ground mission would force Afghan and American soldiers closer together — on the same patrols and into the same makeshift bases. Col. Curtis Taylor announced the mission days before Wilson was buried, before writing a eulogy that included a line reflecting the blow endured by the 172nd Brigade: “His death hit this task force like a hurricane.” Taylor was adamant that the storm not consume his battalion’s primary goal of extending the reach of the Afghan security forces. He said the mission would be “Afghan-led” — a term that U.S. military officials use to suggest the long-term sustainability of the decade-long war effort, which will soon be inherited by this country’s soldiers and policemen. But to some of the U.S. battalion’s soldiers, that meant putting their lives in the hands of men whom they couldn’t trust. Wilson’s death was fresh when they packed in their armored vehicles last month and followed the Afghan army through the winding mountain passes that give way to Spina. “You have to trust the Afghans, but you also have to protect your men,” Perkins said. “There is a residual concern to watch your back after these incidents.” There was also some confusion about what “Afghan-led” really meant. “How many of my men do you need?” asked Col. Safai Mirwais, head of the Afghan battalion partnered with Taylor’s. “It’s your mission,” Taylor responded. “You tell me how many of my men you need.” Taylor looks the part of the quintessential American soldier: broad-shouldered and impeccably uniformed. Mirwais traipses up the

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John Boehner’s debt sword — at the ready

off a crisis, he still wins, because the resulting drop in confidence will slow the economy and injure the incumbent president. This possibility is more than theoretical. During the last default showdown, the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index fell precipitously to the lowest level in more than two years. Analysts cited the debt-ceiling standoff as a factor. Of course, it’s a time-honored tradition to disparage the economy when you’re in the opposition. I covered a hearing in early 2008, before the financial collapse, when Democrats spoke of “hemorrhaging” and “crisis” and then-Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson complained bitterly that they were trying to talk down the economy. But Boehner goes beyond talking down and approaches the realm of precipitating a crisis. On Thursday, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi complained that the other side is willing to “risk the full faith and credit of the United States. . . . It already can be damaging, just the fact that it’s brought up. I think we should snuff it out immediately.” House Republicans have strategic reasons for precipitating a fight over the debt. In its absence, they have been debating issues on the Democrats’ turf, such as the Violence Against Women Act (Republicans passed a face-saving alternative to the Democrats’ version) and renewing the Export-Import Bank (93 House Republicans broke with their leaders). On Thursday, conservatives on Capitol Hill were grumbling over a report by Politico that, if the Supreme Court invalidates the Obamacare health reforms, Republican leaders would attempt to reinstate some of the more popular pieces of the legislation. Returning the discussion to a debt-limit showdown reunites Republicans. But at what cost? I asked Boehner’s spokesman, Michael Steel, whether the speaker worried that the showdown talk would rattle markets and consumers. “If you go back and read the S&P report” when the U.S. debt was downgraded, he said, “it was the failure to come to a more comprehensive agreement to deal with the deficit and debt that caused the downgrade, not the debate over raising the debt limit.” True, Standard & Poor’s said that last summer’s budget deal “falls short” of what would stabilize the debt. But the rating agency also noted that the downgrade reflected “our view that the effectiveness, stability and predictability of American policymaking and political institutions have weakened.” Nobody doubts the need to address the debt, but Boehner’s moves won’t dispel worries about stability and predictability. He

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Small, intense schools rule new High School Challenge rankings

or math among 17-year-olds. I started the Challenge Index ratings of public high schools in 1998 after I watched teachers like Jaime Escalante in East Los Angeles prove that average students could thrive in AP, IB and AICE courses if given extra time and encouragement. The top school on that first ranked list was Stanton College Prep in Jacksonville, Fla., a magnet funneling a large number of minority as well as white children into demanding courses. The other schools at the top of that first list were mostly suburban schools whose strong AP programs were the result of having affluent, college-oriented parents, not any great plan for social change. Fourteen years later, Stanton remains in the top 10, but this time, Stanton is joined by many schools like it, although much smaller. Science and Engineering Magnet in Dallas, ranked third, draws 63 percent of its students from low-income families. At the sixth-ranked School for the Talented and Gifted, located in the same building in Dallas, 33 percent come from low-income homes. For the first time, The Post list includes a sampling of private schools as a way to compare private to public schools, and private to private schools. Most private schools appear not to like such comparisons. On Monday, I will explore their traditional resistance to releasing much data, and why a few have decided to be more open, in part because they think their efforts to strengthen courses for all merit attention. (I should note here that I am continuing my long-standing practice of keeping certain elite public schools, such as Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, on a separate list because they have few or no average students.) The Challenge Index uses a measure of college-level test participation simple enough for readers to calculate the ratings of their neighborhood schools. The complex weightings that characterize many other school rankings are not a factor. I divide the number of AP, IB and AICE exams at each school by the number of graduating seniors. A rural Oregon school like Corbett Charter, which gave only 334 AP tests in 2011, can outrank a big magnet school like Suncoast in Florida, which gave 2,523 AP exams and 1,069 IB exams, because Corbett had only 19 graduates in 2011 and Suncoast had 317. High school rankings by U.S. News & World Report and Newsweek have appeared in the past few years

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Chen Guangcheng’s far-reaching fate

T he departure from China on Saturday of Chen Guangcheng and his family is an occasion, as he said, for mixed emotions. It is wonderful that Mr. Chen is free and will have a respite, at least, from the harassment, confinement and beatings he has endured in recent years. It is troubling that he had to leave relatives behind in less certain conditions. It is worrying to think about what the entire episode has retaught the world about arbitrary rule in China. Mr. Chen is the blind lawyer-activist whose escape from rural house arrest to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing inspired human-rights supporters the world over — and roiled U.S.-China relations. Last month U.S. officials thought they had a deal under which Mr. Chen would be allowed to stay in China and live freely, as he preferred; that fell through, in part due to his second thoughts. U.S. officials then helped negotiate his exit, to study law at New York University. Fulfillment of this deal Saturday should give Mr. Chen, whose vocal opposition to forced abortions and other abuses of China’s “one-child” policy first attracted the attention of China’s security apparatus in 2005, a measure of calm in which to think about his future. Not so, however, for the rest of Mr. Chen’s family or his home village. According to a report released Wednesday by the Hong Kong-based China Human Rights Defenders (CHRD), Mr. Chen’s brother, Chen Guangfu, was shackled and severely beaten with a leather belt by plainclothes police who burst into his house looking for the escaped dissident on April 27. When the plainclothesmen returned to the house later that night and began beating Chen Guangfu’s wife, Ren Zongju, their son Chen Kegui reportedly rushed to defend her, knife in hand. The minor injuries he allegedly inflicted on the security men have earned him a criminal charge, for which he is now being held in the Yinan County Detention Center, according to CHRD. Obviously, these reports come from Mr. Chen and his supporters, but Chinese officials’ behavior toward those attempting to gather independent information strongly implies that the government has something to hide. When The Post’s Keith B. Richburg approached Mr. Chen’s home village, Dongshigu, a week ago, he found it sealed off by plainclothes thugs who kicked his car and chased him away. The fear of these men has spread from Dongshigu to the surrounding villages, Mr.

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Lauren Webster, University of Virginia student and volunteer paramedic, dies at 25

case remains under investigation by Maryland’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Lauren had completed her paramedic training at Northern Virginia Community College. When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in 2005, she went to Biloxi, Miss., to do relief work, first with AmeriCorps and later through Habitat for Humanity. During Mardi Gras in New Orleans, she saw a man drop to the ground and yell, “Help me!” When no one else responded, Lauren began administering CPR. “I couldn’t let him die in front of me,” she told her mother. Lauren’s experience in Mississippi, where she saw the consequences of debt, unemployment and poor medical care, inspired her to apply to the global development studies program at U-Va. “Hearing the stories of families living on the coast taught me why some people suffered more than others, whether the crisis is a natural disaster or a medical emergency,” Lauren wrote in her application for the program. “These drastically different crises have one thing in common — poverty makes the prognosis for recovery far worse.” While at U-Va., Lauren studied in Nicaragua and did research in an Appalachian region of Virginia about how clinics could improve health care through technology. “Although it was a group project,” a classmate wrote in an e-mail, “Lauren really was the core of the research and innovation.” For her graduation thesis, Lauren wrote about first responders to emergencies including the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Her central question: What motivates people to act altruistically? Lauren Hollis Webster was born Dec. 7, 1986, in Washington. As an elementary student at the Montessori School of Alexandria, she wrote plays for her fellow students, recalled a former teacher, Arlene Kowalski. Lauren went to Burgundy Farm Country Day School in Alexandria, where she and her friends founded a Shakespeare club, and later attended Bard College at Simon’s Rock, a private school in Great Barrington, Mass. Survivors include her parents, Sharon Webster of Arlington and Ronald Webster of Warner, Okla.; a brother, Adam Webster of Arlington; and her maternal grandparents, Norman and Marilyn Weizenbaum of Pittsburgh. As an NIH intern last summer, Lauren did research on mitochondrial DNA. She was scheduled to return to work at the lab in June. “She made a significant contribution to our research, but that wasn’t what impacted me the most,” her NIH mentor, Jahda Hill, wrote in an e-mail. “Lauren had tremendous compassion for others.”

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As Chen Guancheng flies to U.S., concern persists over family members left behind

accompanied him and his family on the journey. Dramatic escape Chen’s dramatic escape one month ago from unlawful house arrest in his native Shandong province, and his emergence a week later at the fortified U.S. Embassy in Beijing, had threatened to derail U.S.-China relations as Washington seeks to engage China’s leaders on a wide range of global political and economic issues. But the relatively quick resolution of Chen’s case — so sudden that Chen himself did not know Saturday morning that he was leaving for the United States — suggested that both countries were eager to resolve the matter swiftly and not let it unduly affect their broader relationship. An initial, vitriolic statement by China’s Foreign Ministry accused U.S. diplomats of acting inappropriately by harboring Chen and demanded an apology. But Chinese officials have largely refrained from public comment on the case. And in the midst of the crisis, China’s Defense Minister Liang Guanglie went ahead this month with a planned six-day visit to the United States, the first by a Chinese defense minister in nine years. Still, Chen’s departure leaves several unresolved questions that seem to guarantee that the case will continue to push human rights to the forefront of the agenda of the U.S.-China relationship. The largest unsettled issue is the fate of relatives Chen left behind, particularly a nephew, Chen Kegui, who is in prison in Shandong facing charges of intent to murder. Chen Kegui used a kitchen knife to fight off three intruders in his home April 26 after the discovery of his uncle’s escape. The three turned out to be government agents. In addition, Chen Guangfu, Chen Guangcheng’s older brother, reportedly told a Hong Kong magazine that local officials shackled him to a chair for three days and beat him to make him reveal how Chen Guangcheng managed to escape. Meanwhile, Chen’s home village, Dongshigu, and at least three other villages remain under the control of plainclothes police and armed thugs, and villagers in one location, Xishigu, told The Washington Post in interviews that they are frightened. The thugs have probably clamped down on neighboring villages because they suspect residents aided in Chen Guangcheng’s nighttime escape, friends and others said. After he was taken to Beijing airport Saturday, Chen Guangcheng told The Post by telephone that he had mixed emotions about leaving because of his concern for his relatives. “I really regret not being able

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Apartment building sales boost Capitol Riverfront development

Washington’s emerging waterfront continues to attract interest for the already hot apartment and condominium market, with investors making acquisitions and developers snapping up sites in the Capitol Riverfront area near Nationals Park. Most recently, JP Morgan Asset Management acquired two apartment buildings at 100 Eye St. SE and 909 New Jersey Ave. SE, on behalf of institutional investor clients. The two-building apartment property, known respectively as Axiom at Capitol Yards and 909 at Capitol Yards, includes a total of 483 units and sold for a combined price of more than $188 million. The sellers were entities affiliated with Dallas-based JPI Multifamily Partners. At approximately $392,000 a unit, the luxury apartments sold for more than twice the market average of $155,000 a unit for apartment property sales in the Washington region during the first quarter. The same investors have plans to buy the third property in the portfolio, having placed the much-larger 448-unit Jefferson at Capitol Yards, located at 70 Eye St. SE, under contract. All three of the Capitol Yards apartment buildings include high-end amenities such as fitness centers, lounges and rooftop pools. Also in April, Toll Bros., a luxury home builder, purchased a 1.2-acre lot for $24 million, or $481 a square foot. Though no set plans have been filed for development, the site will likely see apartment or condo units. The lot is located at 1025 First St. SE, within two blocks of the three Capitol Yards buildings being acquired by JP Morgan. According to brokers, these types of properties appeal to those who could afford to own a residence but instead prefer to rent in a location that offers a “Live-Work-Play” urban lifestyle planners envisioned for the area, which has undergone a transformation since the Washington Nationals baseball stadium opened. The influx of residents is also beginning to attract retailers. Harris Teeter and Austin Grill are among retailers that recently signed leases for locations in the area. These recent sales, along with the five proposed or under-construction multifamily projects in the area, help support a growing trend in the Capitol Riverfront area. Kirstie Boatright is a research manager for CoStar Group in Washington.

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Capital Buzz: Rosetta Stone’s new strategy translates into smaller workforce

Thomas Heath is away, but he didn’t leave us empty-handed. We also turned up some news ourselves. Rosetta Stone A spokeswoman for the company declined to specify how many employees were terminated, but said the departures were spread across several of the company’s offices. Rosetta Stone reported having 1,878 employees last December, including 228 in the Washington area. An earnings report earlier this month showed that number had fallen to 1,700 by March 31. “To align with our global growth plan and to provide streamlined efficiencies within our workforce, select members of the Rosetta Stone team will no longer be working with the company,” chief executive Stephen Swad said in a statement. — Steven Overly A stem cell first Columbia- based Osiris Therapeutics got the stamp of approval from health regulators in Canada last week for a stem cell drug to treat children whose bodies react negatively to a bone-marrow transplant. Chief executive C. Randal Mills said the endorsement of Prochymal marks the first time a stem cell drug has been approved by regulators in any country, adding that the company will now pursue approval in the United States and other nations. — Steven Overly There’s money in the air Safeway Not off the shelves per se, but above them. Based in Pleasanton, Calif., Safeway has struck a string of deals by selling the “air rights” above some of its older local stores to apartment developers who then build new apartments above new Safeway stores. After Safeway opened a store in the ground floor of the mixed-use City Vista development in Mount Vernon Triangle, it struck deals to have apartments built above its stores in Wheaton and on Georgia Avenue in D.C. The Wheaton project is under construction and the one on Georgia Avenue is expected to begin later this year. The latest offering, issued by brokers at KLNB May 1, is for the air space above the store at 5101 Wilson Blvd. in Arlington. — Jonathan O’Connell The Buzz hears: Former TV newsie Brooke Salkoff’s CampEasy Web site has its first $200,000 in angel funding. CampEasy, which helps parents connect with summer camps for their kids, gets its revenue from monthly and yearly subscriptions. The round is still open. A group of Washington area private detectives met recently at Dos Gringos restaurant in Mount Pleasant to discuss the formation of a trade association in the wake of the D.C.

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Advocates parade in support of pit bulls

up in domestic violence cases. Kilborn said the number of volunteers for the group’s annual lobby day visits to lawmakers in Annapolis has grown from 10 to 126. Last year, Charles County officials who were considering a ban on pit bulls found themselves outnumbered at public forums as scores of pit bull advocates from across the Washington region descended on the county. The proposal was dropped. Critics of “breed-specific” restrictions argue that such policies don’t stop dog biting incidents and wrongly blame animals instead of irresponsible owners. They have so far been unsuccessful in overturning the pit bull ban in Prince George’s County, which has been in place for more than a decade. Recent battles on the city and county levels have helped pit bull advocates organize. Houliaras started B-More Dogs in response to a 2007 effort to institute a ban in Baltimore County. That effort failed. Kilborn, 53, said Maryland Votes for Animals took off quickly because animal advocates have begun to embrace lobbying as something nearly as critical as rescue work. Pit bull owner Kelli Parker, 37, formed another local advocacy group, The Pretty Chic with The Pits, because of the Charles County battle. She said she wants to separate pit bull advocacy from the blood-throwing stereotype attached to some animal activists. “We wanted to be more professional,” she said. “You don’t want to come off pushy.” The parading pit bulls in Baltimore offered one gauge of public opinion. The canines drew a largely sympathetic response. “I’m fine as long as it doesn’t pee on my leg,” said a police officer as a dog sniffed at him. Passersby snapped photos and boat tour workers kneeled down to pet the dogs as they brushed past. But not everyone was feeling the love, even for this particularly obedient and well-behaved group. A man pushing his grandson in a stroller who only gave his first name, Nick, steered clear. Nodding his head in the direction of a dog on a pink leash, he said, “I wouldn’t want to get near that dog.” The parade petered out in a field not far from the aquarium. As owners and dogs lolled in the grass. Houliaras chatted with other owners. At her feet lay her docile 4-year-old pit bull, Ruby. When Ruby, a therapy dog, gets this way, which is often, Houliaras looks at her and says, “so much for an inherently dangerous dog.”

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‘Ring of Fire’ solar eclipse delights millions across western US, Asia

be the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen,” said Brent Veltri of Salida, Colo. Elsewhere, viewing parties were held at observatories in Reno, Nev., and Oakland, Calif., while skywatchers gathered in coastal and forest counties in California. In some areas, special camera filters for taking photographs have been sold out for weeks in anticipation of the big event. Yet, while millions were making an effort to view the eclipse, some American Indians were adhering to tradition by staying indoors. Navajo Bonnie Charley of Monument Valley in northeast Arizona said she follows her tribe’s traditions. “You’re supposed to stay inside,” said the 75-year-old Charley, whose father was a medicine man. “No eating, drinking or sleeping. That’s for the duration of the eclipse.” She said Navajo traditions surrounding eclipses stem from their beliefs regarding creation. The eclipse was broadcast live on TV in Tokyo, where such an eclipse hasn’t been visible since 1839. Japanese TV crews watched from the top of Mount Fuji and even staked out a zoo south of Tokyo to capture the reaction of the chimpanzees — who didn’t seem to notice. Eclipse tours were arranged in Japan at schools and parks, on pleasure boats and even private airplanes. Similar events were held in China and Taiwan as well, with skywatchers warned to protect their eyes. A light rain fell on Tokyo as the eclipse began, but the clouds thinned as it reached its peak, providing near perfect conditions. “It was a very mysterious sight,” said Kaori Sasaki, who joined a crowd in downtown Tokyo to watch event. “I’ve never seen anything like it.” A Japanese zoo said the eclipse apparently made ring-tailed lemurs believe it was evening. Some 20 lemurs at the Japan Monkey Center in central Japan skipped breakfast, climbed up and jumped between trees and poles, a typical evening behavior, according to the zoo web site. They returned to normal after the eclipse. “They must be reacting to the eclipse,” zoo director Akira Kato told public broadcaster NHK. At the Taipei Astronomical Museum in Taiwan, the spectacle emerged from dark clouds for only about 30 seconds. But the view was nearly perfect against Manila’s orange skies. “It’s amazing. We do this for the awe (and) it has not disappointed. I am awed, literally floored,” said astronomical hobbyist Garry Andreassen, whose long camera lenses were lined up with those of about 10 other gazers in a downtown Manila

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Bob McDonnell’s national security problem

Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-Va.) has long been on almost everyone’s short list for the Republican vice presidential nomination. But the recent controversy over Virginia’s law requiring ultrasounds before abortions may have hurt McDonnell’s chances at the VP nod (he somehow managed to anger social conservatives by backing a watered-down version of the bill and moderates who say the fight plays right into Obama’s “war on women” strategy). Still, McDonnell enjoys 62 percent approval in a swing state that is critical to the GOP’s prospects this November. And as a 21-year Army veteran, and the father of a daughter who served as a platoon leader in Iraq, he seemed to bring strong national security credentials to the GOP ticket. But now McDonnell’s national security credentials have come into question, thanks to his mishandling of a bill passed by the Virginia General Assembly that disassociates the commonwealth from the military detention of al-Qaeda or its terrorist affiliates who happen to be U.S. citizens. The bill, HB 1160, would effectively bar Virginia state troopers from arresting a terrorist like Anwar al-Awlaki if they knew he would be put in military detention. McDonnell didn’t raise a finger to stop this odious legislation as it made its way through the Virginia legislature. As a result, it passed 97-3 in the House of Delegates and 39-1 in the state Senate. Far from fighting this bill, McDonnell’s office issued a statement on passage expressing the governor’s “shared concern that Virginia does not participate in the unconstitutional detention of U.S. citizens.” Of course, there have been no “unconstitutional detentions of U.S. citizens” — but instead of pointing this out and opposing the statute, McDonnell gave credence to the false premise that underpins it. Former attorney general Ed Meese and former Homeland Security secretary Mike Chertoff wrote McDonnell detailing HB 1160’s many practical dangers and constitutional flaws, and told him, “We strongly urge you to veto the bill.” The governor rejected their advice. McDonnell spokesman Tucker Martin told me the governor believes “that terrorist acts against our nation by enemy groups and combatants should be dealt with for what they are — acts of war,” and that an American citizen can be held as an enemy combatant, provided he can challenge his detention in court. But once the bill had been approved by such overwhelming margins, his office says, McDonnell had only three options: veto it (and see his

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Loudoun, Maryland teens claim top spots at international science fair

Loudoun County science whiz Ari Dyckovsky, who was one of 40 teenage finalists in the 2012 national Intel Science Talent Search for his work in quantum physics, was among the top three winners announced Friday at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Pittsburgh, the world’s largest high school science research competition. Although Dyckovsky, 18, did not claim one of the top spots at the talent search competition in March, his work in quantum teleportation earned him a place in the international science fair, where he was awarded one of two $50,000 Intel Foundation Young Scientist Awards last week. The other Young Scientist Award went to Nicholas Schiefer, 17, of Ontario, Canada, who studied the ability to search small amounts of Internet content, such as tweets and Facebook status updates. The competition’s first-place Gordon E. Moore Award, a $75,000 prize, went to another teen from the Washington region — Jack Andraka, 15, of Crownsville, who devised a noninvasive method to detect pancreatic cancer. Dyckovsky was among more than 1,500 young scientists chosen to compete in the contest, selected from 446 affiliate science fairs (including the Intel Science Talent Search) in about 70 countries, regions and territories, the Intel Corp. announcement said. “It’s been incredible — I didn’t think I had a chance, but people were so interested in my project. And everyone else I talked to here was so brilliant. We all appreciate each other’s work so much,” Dyckovsky said, shortly after the top prizes were announced. “I’m pretty speechless.” Over the past few years, Dyckovsky has spent many hours researching quantum “entanglement” with his mentor, Steven Olmschenk, at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg. Dyckovsky said his research shows how, through the entanglement process, information from one atom can be made to appear in a second atom when the quantum state of the first atom is destroyed. It’s a complicated concept, but the potential impact is significant: The entanglement method could ultimately allow organizations to send encrypted messages without the risk of interception, because the information would not actually travel to its new location — it would simply appear there. Dyckovsky, a senior at Heritage High School and the Loudoun Academy of Science, plans to continue his education at Stanford University on a scholarship in the fall. “I’m going to start with studying mathematics, and we’ll see from there,” he said. Andraka, who took the

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Some planets have no star to circle; book relates dispute over medical discovery

Space Lonely planets, with nothing to orbit Astronomy Magazine, May What’s lonelier than the loneliest person in the world? The loneliest world in the galaxy. In this month’s issue of Astronomy, Steve Nadis writes about rogue planets, worlds that are freely floating through interstellar space. In the chaotic early stages of their development, planetary systems are thought to form a bunch of objects (planets, planetoids, etc.). But as the system stabilizes, not everybody makes the gravitational cut. “Some of these planets get thrown out, and what remains is a stable configuration,” writes Nadis. “At that point, the system is dynamically full, with no unoccupied niches for large bodies to slip into.” Thus, a few planets slip off. Because they are tiny and dim objects, it’s tough for scientists to get a glimpse of them. But by using a process called microlensing — monitoring subtle shifts in brightness when an object, such as a planet, drifts in front of a more distant light source — researchers have built a strong case for their existence and now think that these lonely worlds are highly numerous, perhaps outnumbering more familiar, tethered worlds. Biology A question of scientific credit “Experiment Eleven,” Walker Books The discovery of streptomycin, the first antibiotic effective against tuberculosis, was a big step forward for medicine, but, from an ethical standpoint, it was not a golden moment for the scientific community. In “Experiment Eleven,” Peter Pringle writes about Albert Schatz, a graduate student at Rutgers College of Agriculture who was working as a lab assistant when, in 1943, he discovered the microbe that produced the antibiotic. As Pringle tells the story, the lab’s director, Selman Waksman, took the credit, even though he did not participate in the experiments that yielded the drug. Though Schatz was initially listed as co-discoverer, Pringle writes, his boss eventually pressured him into relinquishing the patent rights to the university and hid the fact that he was getting a significant portion of the royalties. Schatz eventually sued and won an out-of-court settlement, but the lawsuit sullied his reputation in the scientific community, and when the discovery led to a Nobel Prize in 1952, his boss was the sole recipient. (Neither Waksman’s Nobel laureate biography nor his Wikipedia entry mentions the controversy.) Ultimately, Schatz’s lab notes were rediscovered and his work was recognized, but his story remains a cautionary tale. — Aaron Leitko

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Yahoo seals Alibaba deal, kicks turnaround into high gear

Yahoo may have hit a low point last week when it announced that chief executive Scott Thompson had left the company after just five months after questions were raised about his academic record. But the company is wasting no time in trying to turn around its fortunes, announcing Sunday that it had finally closed a long-rumored deal for its stake in the Chinese Web company Alibaba. Yahoo said the agreement included selling a 20 percent share of its stake in Alibaba, worth about $7.1 billion, according to a company news release. Sealing the deal with Alibaba had been a top priority for Daniel Loeb, the activist investor who first raised questions about Thompson’s academic record. Loeb and two others nominated by his hedge fund, Third Point, were appointed to Yahoo’s board of directors after Thompson’s departure. Analysts said the deal with Alibaba was an aggressive way to push the company forward and move on from its executive’s troubles.. In a note to investors, BCG’s Collin Gillis upgraded Yahoo from “Buy” to “Hold,” saying that believes the new board will be good for the company. “We see the new board as increasing the focus on Yahoo’s core media business and limiting the potential for large dilutive acquisitions,” he said. Next up, Gillis said that he is looking to see Yahoo mon­etize its stake in Yahoo Japan. The announcement and Yahoo’s dogged pursuit of a turnaround could suggest that interim CEO Ross Levinsohn is primed for the top job, but Forbes notes that it’s much too soon to be popping champagne corks for the ad veteran. Ronald Josey, an analyst with ThinkEquity in New York, told the publication, “Levinsohn has the right credentials for the job, but it’s still early, and I think Yahoo knows that.” After all, Levinsohn has been on the job for only about a week. Yahoo was trading up just over 1 percent Monday, at $15.60 per share near closing bell. Related stories: Yahoo chief executive resigns, company adds new board members Yahoo adds to Facebook suit Yahoo: Who is Ross Levinsohn?

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Government has foreign language deficit

choices.” The Defense Department has similar difficulties. More than 80 percent of its language slots were filled in fiscal year 2011, but just 28 percent “were filled with personnel at the required foreign-language proficiency level,” Laura Junor, a deputy assistant secretary of defense, said in her statement. “Although we may be filling the positions, we are not filling those positions with individuals with the requisite proficiency skill level.” Recruiting and hiring is tough. “At the outset, it is difficult to identify the right people,” Tracey North, an FBI deputy assistant director, said in her testimony. Not only must they speak the foreign language excellently, but their reputations must survive thorough background investigations. “On average, one out of every 10 applicants gets through the entire contract linguist applicant process,” North said. “Furthermore, there is a limited availability of qualified speakers of vital foreign languages who are U.S. citizens and have the English skills to support our requirements.” People such as Shauna Kaplan, a fifth-grader at Providence Elementary School in Fairfax County and one of three students at the hearing who spoke about their foreign language experiences, are changing that. Shauna presented herself well at the hearing, delivering parts of her testimony in fluent Chinese, which she translated for her audience. “That means: Thank you everyone. I am happy to speak some Chinese today. Learning Chinese is not hard. You also can learn Chinese.” She did so well that she earned applause. Too bad Uncle Sam can’t hire her — yet. Long odds for DPBO Gay and lesbian advocates cheered last week when a Senate committee advanced legislation that would allow employment fringe benefits for same-sex partners of federal employees. The Human Rights Campaign, which pushes for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights, issued a news release saying it “hailed” and “applauds” the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approval of the Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act (DPBO). But that might be where the bill stops, at least for now. Action by the full, Democratically controlled Senate is uncertain, and chances the Republican-ruled House will vote on the bill are not good. “Given the fact that the House is controlled by conservative Republicans, this legislation is unlikely to become law this year,” said Fred Sainz, HRC vice president. “And that does not speak well of the federal government as an employer.” Leonard Hirsch, president of Federal Globe, an organization of

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Jill Tarter steps down as director of SETI

For more than three decades, astronomer and extraterrestrial life visionary Jill Tarter has been the public face of the sometimes controversial, sometimes lauded search for signs of intelligent beings throughout the cosmos. A founding member in 1984 of the nonprofit Center for SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Research, Tarter has led the group’s expansion and evolution as the broader science of astrobiology has blossomed. To her great disappointment, she said last week, SETI has not detected the kind of compressed radio signals from afar that nature cannot create but intelligent beings can. Nonetheless, she said she is beyond delighted about how the search for life beyond Earth has become so much more sophisticated, more promising and more mainstream. Yet Tarter and SETI announced Tuesday morning that its longtime director will step down from that post and turn her efforts to fundraising to keep the organization afloat. Tarter will hand over the director’s reins to Gerry Harp, an expert in quantum mechanics who has been an innovator in using the Northern California radio telescope array that SETI partially owns and has helped run. Why the move now? “When we started SETI, we had two goals in mind,” Tarter said, “to search for extraterrestrial intelligence, and to create a center where that search could continue into the future as our technologies, our understandings and our computing powers increased. “The search is more robust now than ever, but the center is struggling financially. It needs somebody to spend all their time raising funds so the Center for SETI Research itself can be around to understand that signal we are confident will be sent.” Tarter, 68, was the obvious choice to lead the fundraising effort. Well-respected and honored in the scientific community, she is also known in popular culture as Ellie Arroway, a young woman obsessed with extraterrestrial life, played by actress Jodie Foster in the 1997 movie “Contact.” Tarter has also long been involved in outreach programs such as SETI@home, which encourages computer owners to help process SETI data on their machines, and has been the principal investigator for two elementary, middle and high school curriculum projects on “Life in the Universe” and evolution funded by NASA, the National Science Foundation and others. The immediacy of the financial threat became clear last year. SETI and the University of California at Berkeley jointly operated a sophisticated radio telescope array built with $30 million donated

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Jill Tarter steps down as director of SETI

of collision with the growing amount of orbiting space junk. Tarter said that SETI will be able to continue its operations at the array — at Hat Creek, between Mount Lassen and Mount Shasta — while the space debris tracking gears up. Fascinated by the work of Frank Drake, a pioneer in the field, Tarter started her work on the search for extraterrestrial life in the mid-1970s. For some time she worked on a small NASA-sponsored program focused on that search. The program was scheduled to expand in the early 1990s, but then-Sen. Richard H. Bryan (D-Nev.) effectively killed it, famously saying the federal government shouldn’t be spending money in the search for little green men and UFOs. (It wasn’t.) SETI wasn’t allowed to compete for federal funds from 1993 until the last years of the George W. Bush administration. SETI’s work continued under the nonprofit SETI Institute in Mountain View, Calif. A primary focus now is to look for signals that might be coming from the stars with orbiting exoplanets that have been identified by NASA’s Kepler telescope. The Kepler space observatory has already found more than 2,300 “candidate” planets, and its discoveries have led astronomers and planetary scientists to conclude that there are probably hundreds of billions of planets in the Milky Way alone. Tarter is a member of the science team working with the Kepler data streaming in. “Kepler has dramatically changed and improved how we do our SETI searches,” Tarter said. “Before we were pointing at stars that just might have planets and moons, and now we know they’re out there. Very exciting.” She said she’s also encouraged by the growing international interest in SETI observation. Under the initiative of Japanese astronomer and observatory director Shin-ya Narusawa, a worldwide SETI effort to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Drake’s first efforts brought in 27 institutions from 15 nations. The idea for the Northern California radio telescope array was born of SETI’s desire to have dedicated telescope time all its own, coupled with the pioneering work of William “Jack” Welch, former director of University of California at Berkeley’s Radio Astronomy Laboratory and of the fledgling Hat Creek facility. That Tarter and Welch are married no doubt lent additional energy to the joint venture. Tarter says she hopes her greater role in fundraising will allow the Allen Array to grow to its initially planned size, but more immediately to

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7 bad foods that are actually good for you

cups of fruits and vegetables a day because of their superior health benefits. Soy Though popular for centuries in many Asian cuisines, soy is sometimes seen as dangerous after studies found elevated rates of breast cancer among rats when they were fed a concentrated soy derivative. But studies looking at whole soy foods in humans have not found a connection. In fact, the reverse may be true. Soy, “when consumed in childhood or adolescence may make breast tissue less vulnerable to cancer development later in life and probably has no effect on breast cancer risk when consumption begins in adulthood,” said Karen Collins, registered dietitian and nutrition adviser with the American Institute for Cancer Research. Actually, Collins said, the evidence is so strong for protection against heart disease that the FDA allowed a health claim for labels on soy food products. Alcohol Alcohol is feared because of the potential for abuse and alcoholism and complications such as liver disease, which are valid concerns. But decades’ worth of research shows that moderate alcohol consumption “can reduce deaths from most causes, particularly heart disease, and it raises HDL (good) cholesterol,” the USDA’s David Baer said. Wine may have additional benefits because its grapes are filled with nutrients called polyphenols, which reduce blood-clotting, inflammation and oxidation. The key is to drink alcohol moderately and with meals. What’s moderation? One serving daily for women and two servings for men, with a serving being 5 ounces of wine, 12 ounces of beer or 1.5 ounces of spirits. Fried Foods While it’s true that frying food usually increases its caloric content, that doesn’t necessarily make it unhealthful. As long as food is fried in healthful oil instead of butter, shortening, or trans fat, and it’s eaten in moderation, it isn’t less healthy. In fact, fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, and heart-healthy, cancer-preventive carotenoids such as beta-carotene (e.g., carrots, sweet potatoes), lycopene (e.g., tomatoes) and lutein/zeaxanthin (deep-green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale), need fat in order to be absorbed by the body. “The consumption of certain fats, such as saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids [fats that are solid at room temperature], is associated with an . . . increased risk of cardiovascular disease. On the other hand, the unsaturated fats, monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids [canola, safflower and olive oils] have significant metabolic benefits and are health promoting,” said

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With milestone launch, SpaceX aims to make space cheap — and cool

drive down the cost of routine launches, NASA can focus instead on developing future deep-space missions. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, shown in 2011 unveiling the Falcon Heavy rocket at the National Press Club in Washington. (NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/GETTY IMAGES) Q: How is the SpaceX spacecraft different from a space shuttle? A: The company’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule are much smaller than the shuttle and carry less cargo. With construction of the space station complete, NASA didn’t need a vehicle as large as the shuttle. Unlike the shuttle, which landed on a runway, Dragon will splash down in the ocean, off the coast of California. Although the current Dragon is unmanned, SpaceX plans to upgrade the vehicle to— someday — carry as many as seven passengers into orbit and back to Earth. Q: What is the goal of the current mission? A: It’s a shakedown cruise. SpaceX has to prove that it is ready to fulfill a NASA contract to send a dozen supply-stuffed Dragon capsules to the space station over the next five to seven years. If Dragon does dock with the station as planned, it will signal that SpaceX is ready to move from vehicle development to regular operations. Q: Is the commercial space strategy really saving NASA money? A: A NASA report published last year found that the development costs of the Falcon 9 rocket were about a third of what NASA would have spent. That’s a huge savings to NASA. Instead of micromanaging vehicle design and construction, NASA instead handed $381 million in seed cash to SpaceX and let the company find ways to be efficient. SpaceX officials love to talk about how they save money. Theybuild rockets from scratch at a site near Los Angeles. Keeping construction compact saves money. The company is using a refurbished launch pad at Cape Canaveral — which was a lot cheaper than building a new one. When the company needed a fuel tank for the pad, they bought one from the Air Force for a dollar over scrap. SpaceX rockets also require fewer people to build, launch and operate than the shuttle did. There’s no standing army of shuttle workers to pay year-round for just a few launches. Everything about SpaceX’s operations — including the modest, metal-sided launch center on Cape Canaveral — screams “efficiency.” And it should. SpaceX founder Elon Musk is in this business to make money.

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See the U.S.A. in interesting ways; more bucket list achievements

especially when he was stationed in Hawaii. When he started working in the private sector, he packed his clubs for business trips. “One day, after a round of golf, I was sitting talking with friends about where we’d played,” said Bob, 72, from Eldersburg, Md. “One guy said, ‘Gee, Bob, you’ve played in like half the states.’ ” That’s when he decided to bag the other half. All the courses he played were public, many of them municipal courses. The strangers he played with were always keen to learn about his quest. He burned the last of his frequent-flier miles to get to Alaska, where he played a round at 10 p.m. June 21 — the longest day of the year. (Bad decision, he says in retrospect. It’s practically still winter there then.) Cross-country road trips to play golf allowed Bob and his wife of 50 years, Pat, to visit friends they hadn’t seen for decades. Pat doesn’t golf. “I don’t know if the marriage is strong enough to sustain both of us on the golf course at the same time,” Bob said. Run, Larry, run Larry Dickerson But at age 48, he decided to get back into the sport. He’d smoked for most of his adult life and was feeling pretty unhealthy. He signed up for the Chicago Marathon and asked a friend to send him some training tips. “I was grossly unprepared for the Chicago Marathon,” Larry said. “I finished it in just under five hours. My calves were so tied up I was afraid I couldn’t get to my car and get home.” But Larry kept at it, running road races whenever he could. He tried to fit them in when he was traveling for his job in facilities management and human resources for a defense contractor. “Then I realized, ‘Hey I’ve run in 20 states. Why not just keep going?’ It hasn’t been a fevered chase until about now. I know I’m running short on time.” Larry is 80. He’s often the oldest participant in any race he runs. This month, he knocked off two states, running a 5K in Tulsa on a Friday evening and another 5K in Wichita two days later. He has eight more states to go, including most of the Great Plains. He plans to run his final race in Alaska. “I’m getting closer,” Larry said. Read previous columns by John Kelly.

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Consumer agency to target prepaid cards

The new federal consumer watchdog agency is considering drafting new rules governing transparency and safety in the rapidly growing market for prepaid cards. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray said the cards have fewer regulatory protections than bank accounts and debit cards. The agency said it will focus rule-making on three key areas: disclosure of fees and terms, liability for unauthorized transactions and niche product features, such as overdrawing an account. The agency is holding a field hearing on the cards Wednesday in North Carolina. “The people who use prepaid cards are, in many instances, the most vulnerable among us,” Cordray said. “All consumers need, and deserve, products which are safe and whose costs and risks are clear upfront.” The rules would apply specifically to prepaid cards that can be reloaded and used at an array of locations. Many consumers are using these cards as replacements for traditional checking accounts. According to a recent focus group convened by the Pew Health Group, consumers said the cards help them avoid costly bank overdraft fees and are a useful budgeting tool. Generally, consumers can only spend the money they have loaded onto the card. But the Pew focus group found that consumers were concerned about the number of fees associated with prepaid cards. They include charges to buy the card, reload money, withdraw money from an ATM and call customer service. The CFPB said there is no industry-wide standard on disclosures, making it hard for consumers to comparison shop. In addition, some cards offer features allowing customers to overdraw their accounts or build their credit. The agency is seeking feedback on the costs, benefits and consumer-protection issues associated with those features. Terry Maher, general counsel at the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association, said the trade group supports transparent disclosures. Several of its members have been working with advocacy groups on test forms, he said. Maher said the group is also open to requiring prepaid card providers that offer overdraft to comply with the same regulations for those fees as banks. But he said it “would be a mistake” to ban the product all together. “We’re in favor of consumers being able to choose the product that’s right for them after they get clear and transparent disclosures,” Maher said. More of the latest business news: CBO report: Taxmageddon would throw U.S. back into recession Generic-drug makers: Brand-name rivals are exploiting loopholes Energy

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What to do on rainy days at the beach

Ocean City. 410-524-1000. www.carouselhotel.com. Skating, $5; for hotel guests, $4. Skate rental, $3; for hotel guests, $2. Shopping When it rains, a lot of people head to the popular outlet malls in Rehoboth, but there’s much more to explore. Berlin’s historic downtown is filled with small antique shops and boutiques. Highlights include the Coconut Bay Trading Co., where objects range from Burmese marionettes to 19th-century Russian icons, and the eclectic Nest, which mixes new bags and scarves with antique furnishings. Delaware destinations include antique malls and bookstores on the quaint main streets of Milford and downtown Lewes. Coconut Bay Trading Co., 18 Williams St., Berlin, Md. 443-513-4012. Nest, 116 Broad St., Berlin, Md. 410-629-1030. Brewery tours A visit to Dogfish Head Brewery is probably at the top of every beer lover’s list — reservations for free tours are recommended — but the Delmarva beer scene has greatly expanded since last Memorial Day. The 16 Mile Brewing Co., which is getting its brews on the menu at more beach bars, unveiled a new tavern and tasting room at its Georgetown, Del., brewery in January. The Evolution Craft Brewing Co. left Delaware for Salisbury, Md., earlier this spring, and its owners opened a much larger tasting room and brewery along with Public House, a locavore-friendly restaurant and bar next door. On the menu: beers on a dozen taps, sauteed asparagus topped with sauteed duck eggs and honeyed yogurt, and pork belly served with ramps and fiddlehead greens. Now open daily, the Burley Oak bar and brewery in Berlin poured its first beer in August 2011; its brews debuted in the District in the middle of this month. Stop by the bar to pick up the Rude Boy Ale. Perhaps the most unusual new arrival is the Fin City Brewing nanobrewery inside Hooper’s Crab House in West Ocean City. It offers two draft beers — a spicy Sneaky Wheat ale and the Fin Light, which my bartender compared to Coors Light — and you can get them only at the riverfront restaurant and bar. ●Dogfish Head, 6 Cannery Village Center, Milton, Del. 302-684-1000. www.dogfish.com. Tours offered Tuesday-Saturday. ●16 Mile Brewing Co., 413 S. Bedford St., Georgetown, Del. 302-253-8816. www.16milebrewery.com. Tasting room open Tuesday-Saturday; tours offered Thursday-Saturday. ●Evolution Craft Brewing Co., 201 E. Vine St., Salisbury, Md. 443-260-2337. www.evolutioncraftbrewing.com. Tasting room and restaurant open daily. No brewery tours yet. ●Burley Oak Brewing Co, 10016

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Obama touts American exceptionalism, end of wars in Air Force graduation speech

COLORADO SPRINGS — In a commencement address to the graduating service members, Obama hailed a milestone moment as the country winds down its military involvement in the two wars that have defined the generation that has come of age after Sept. 11, 2001. The Class of 2012 is the first in nearly a decade, Obama said, that is entering active service with no U.S. troops fighting in Iraq and the first that can envision an end to the Afghanistan conflict. “For a decade, we have labored under the dark cloud of war. Now, we can see the light of a new day on the horizon,” the president said, speaking on a stage in the middle of the academy’s football field as the cadets, dressed in blue-and-white uniforms, sat in rows before him. “The end of these wars will shape your service, and it will make our military stronger.” Obama’s appearance came just two days after he presided over a NATO summit in Chicago at which the allied nations agreed to a framework to wind down the Afghanistan war by the end of 2014. Over the past half-year, the president has touted the end of the Iraq war and the drawdown in Afghanistan as centerpieces of his foreign policy record as he makes his case for reelection, reminding the public that he made good on his campaign promise to end the Iraq conflict. The Obama campaign has identified military families as a potential source of votes in battleground states, hoping to undercut a traditionally strong voting bloc for Republicans. Vice President Biden is scheduled to speak at West Point’s graduation ceremony Saturday. The president used much of his speech Wednesday to declare that American influence has not waned, as some of his critics have suggested. Instead, he argued, “the United States is leading once more. From Europe to Asia, our alliances are stronger than ever.” He pointed to the partnership with Japan after the earthquake and tsunami there last year and his administration’s approach to aiding Libyan rebels in overthrowing the oppressive regime of Moammar Gaddafi last fall. The argument was aimed squarely at sharp criticism from the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Mitt Romney, who has called Obama too soft on Iran. Republicans also have accused the president of responding too slowly to the pro-democracy movements that have challenged long-standing autocracies in the Middle East and North Africa, and failing to

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D.C. news in brief

Housing expo to focus on foreclosure prevention The Department of Housing and Community Development and the Greater Washington Urban League have scheduled the D.C. Housing Expo and Foreclosure Clinic from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 2 at the Washington Convention Center, 801 Mount Vernon Pl. NW. Highlights include workshops on foreclosure prevention, homeownership, senior housing and financial literacy; free credit reports and counseling; home repair and cooking demonstrations; and exhibits from community and government organizations, lenders and real estate agents. Borrowers can meet with mortgage companies and a HUD-approved counseling agency to work on a foreclosure prevention plan. Lenders, including most major area banks, will be present to work with homeowners. For information, call 202-442-7200 or go to dhcd.dc.gov. DDOT to discuss Parkside pedestrian bridge The D.C. Department of Transportation has scheduled a public meeting on the Parkside pedestrian bridge from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Neval Thomas Elementary School, 650 Anacostia Ave. NE. The bridge will connect the Mayfair neighborhood and proposed Parkside development on the west with the Minnesota Avenue Metro stations, downtown Ward 7 and the Deanwood Community on the east. Transportation staff members will show how the bridge, its access ramps and stairs will be aligned and outline the steps for design and construction. For information, go to www.anacostiawaterfront.org/parksidepedestrianbridge, e-mail ddot.awi@dc.gov or call 202-741-8528. ‘Mobile job store’ helps veterans find work A “mobile job store” made a stop at the D.C. Armory last week to help National Guard and reservists find employment, according to a news release. The Hero 2 Hired mobile job store helped National Guard members and reservists search for jobs online and put them in contact with companies committed to hiring military personnel. Service members were also shown how to create a résumé, including translating their military skills into civilian job qualifications. More than 125 veterans and service members visited the store during its May 17 stop at the D.C. Armory. For information, go to h2h.jobs. DDOT to discuss two-way cycle track on First St. NE A public meeting on the First Street NE Reconstruction Project is scheduled from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Flats 130 Apartment Building, 130 M St. NE. The D.C. Department of Transportation project will create a two-way cycle track on the east side of First Street NE from K Street to G Street NE. The project will upgrade signals and streetlights, add sidewalks, enhance crosswalks

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D.C., Maryland and Virginia health code violations

This food establishment was closed because of health code violations. The list, compiled from health department reports, reflects actions taken by the departments. THE DISTRICT Three Way Liquors 4823 Georgia Ave. NW Closed May 14 for circumstances that might endanger public health. Reopened May 15. MARYLAND No new closures reported. VIRGINIA No new closures reported. — Compiled by Terence McArdle

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USOC, IOC reach deal that will pave the way for future Olympics in United States

the way for the USOC to submit a candidate city for the 2022 Winter Games or the 2024 Summer Games. USOC leadership, which did not put forth a bid for the 2020 Games, had vowed not to bid again until the revenue matter was resolved. Chicago’s defeat in the race for the 2016 Games was considered particularly humiliating because President Obama had traveled to Copenhagen, where the vote took place in 2009, to campaign personally. A Winter Games has not been staged in the United States since Salt Lake City played host in 2002. Atlanta held the last Summer Games in the United States in 1996. Reno-Tahoe, Nev.; Salt Lake City; and Denver have formally expressed interest in the 2022 Games. Dallas and Tulsa are interested in bidding for the 2024 Summer Games. Other cities, including Bozeman, Mont., have unofficially made known their interest. A U.S. official said no determination has been made on which Games the USOC would seek. USOC officials have “not even considered that issue or had discussions or even looked at that until this is done,” the official said. Canadian IOC member Dick Pound, who helped negotiate the original revenue-sharing deal, played down the impact the deal had on New York’s and Chicago’s bids but suggested the United States might continue to face opposition in its bids to win Olympic Games. “The danger right now, if they reach an agreement, is they may think the problem has gone away and America is back,” Pound said. “I don’t think they’re there yet.” Pound noted that new cities continue to emerge in Olympic bidding. Rio de Janeiro, which will host the 2016 Summer Games, became the first South American city to win the Olympics. Doha, Qatar, and Baku, Azerbaijan, bid for the 2020 Games, though both were eliminated Wednesday. Tokyo, Madrid and Istanbul remain in the hunt. Those Games will be awarded next summer. U.S. officials have long argued that they deserve more of the international revenue pie because U.S. sponsors and television rights holders provide the bulk of IOC revenues. The USOC is also the only national Olympic committee in the world that receives no government funding, making IOC money critical to supporting U.S. athletes. The most recent negotiations began more than two years ago. Talks about renegotiating the deal, however, got underway more than five years ago under previous USOC president Peter Ueberroth. Those talks stalled.

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Ultramarathon runners hope to raise their profile, and their prize money

Karl Meltzer runs down the West Rim Trail at Zion National Park, about six miles from the main canyon. (Photo by Jeff Browning ) Just a few decades back, marathons were small, obscure races run by a handful of hard-core zealots, nearly all of them men. The idea of big-city mega-races that attract tens of thousands of participants and millions of spectators had not even been conceived. But then came the running boom of the 1970s, which popularized the sport and transformed marathons into televised, inclusive events that feature elites from around the globe competing for large cash prizes, running alongside men and women pursuing only their personal goals. Long-distance trail runners hope to follow a similar path in a bid to raise the profile of a sport that has experienced significant growth but has yet to become even a blip on the competitive sports radar. Instead, ultramarathoning (any race of more than 26.2 miles) on trails has been characterized by sporadic and chaotic development. Events haven’t been able to keep up with demand, fields are limited by government restrictions on trail use, access for spectators and media is hampered by difficult logistics and there is no unified championship as there is in marathoning and triathlon. “Anyone who is reasonably competitive wants to see [the sport] grow,” said Karl Meltzer, who holds the record for most victories in 100-mile races. “But for the mid-packers especially, it’s a bummer that people can’t get in because of the limited field size and how many join the lottery.” According to the American Trail Running Association (ATRA), the number of trail races has more than tripled since 2000 to 2,400 events, and the number of participants has grown from 90,000 to 230,000.UltraRunning Magazine reported the number of runners who finished ultra-length trail races increased from 15,500 in 1998 to 52,000 in 2011. Though participation still does not compare with marathoning — 518,000 people finished U.S. marathons in 2011 — ultramarathon trail running has grown as much in the last four years as it did in its first 27. A few of the most prestigious ultras — including the Western States Endurance Run in California and the Leadville Trail 100 and Hardrock 100 Endurance Run, both in Colorado — attract as many as eight times the number of applicants they can accommodate. Despite offering little or no prize money, they serve as unofficial championships. Elites

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National Geographic Bee winner is Texas student Rahul Nagvekar

was among the 10 finalists at the contest. (Sarah L. Voisin/WASHINGTON POST) “It was a complete guess,” Nagvekar said later. “I was thinking of two cities, Regensburg and Ingolstadt. Luckily, Regensburg was correct.” If this question seems obscure, it’s not your imagination. The questions at Thursday’s bee presented geography puzzles in the context of world history, culture and current events. President Obama even appeared via video, asking students which Asian city on the Han River hosted the nuclear security summit in March. (The answer was Seoul.) The questions were the last step of a months-long process to whittle down a pool of thousands of students from each state, the District and the U.S. territories. In the end, 10 finalists competed for their share of more than $50,000 in prizes. While Nagvekar won the the grand prize, runnerup Jain and third-place finisher Varun Mahadevan, 13, of California got $15,000 and $10,000 scholarships, respectively. In fourth place, Raghav Ranga, 14, of Arizona took home $1,000. Adam Rusak “I want you to take some solace in the fact that you made it here to the top 10,” Trebek told him. Rounding out the top 10 were Karthik Karnik, 14, of Massachusetts; Gopi Ramanathan, 14, of Minnesota; Anthony Cheng, 13, of Utah; Anthony Stoner, 14, of Louisiana; and Neelam Sandhu, 13, of New Hampshire. With each incorrect answer, the teenagers fought to maintain their composure. Emotions ranged from visible shock to audible disappointment to, finally, utter surprise. Nagvekar said he had only two things on his mind during the course of the competition: to stay calm and survive through the final round. “My goal was to be on the stage when the last question was read,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting to win.” Several of Nagvekar’s competitors had ahistory with the bee. Karnik was a finalist in 2011, Stoner was a three-time state champion in Louisiana, and this was Jain’s third time competing in the finals. Sandhu, the only girl in the competition, said her older brother had competed in 2008, when he came in fifth. “There were people on stage that had won state three or four times and had perfect scores at prelims on Tuesday,” Nagvekar said. “I didn’t have that.” What he lacked in competitive experience, Nagvekar made up for in discipline. “I’ve been preparing since I was in the fourth grade,” he said. “I’ve gone through a lot of maps.”

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USOC can focus on Olympics bid after signing revenue sharing deal with IOC

The U.S. Olympic Committee put a contentious financial dispute officially behind it Thursday by signing a 20-year revenue-sharing deal with the International Olympic Committee, and then almost immediately turning its attention to another major task: bringing the Olympic Games back to the United States. “We hope that this has removed a major roadblock from a successful bid from the United States,” USOC President Larry Probst said during a news conference in Quebec City on Thursday afternoon. The USOC’s board will develop a process to determine which U.S. city to support and whether to pursue the Winter or Summer Olympics — the next available are the 2022 Winter Games and the 2024 Summer Games — during its next meeting in San Jose at the end of June, USOC Chief Executive Scott Blackmun said. “Our strategy is to develop a strategy at this point,” Blackmun said during the news conference, then added later during an interview by phone: “Everybody on the board feels having the Games in the U.S. is a priority, but I don’t think anybody wants to put a bid together that we don’t think will win.” Salt Lake City; Reno-Lake Tahoe, Nev.; Denver; and Bozeman, Mont., have all expressed interest in bidding for the 2022 Winter Games. Dallas and Tulsa wanted to submit bids for the 2020 Summer Games. The two sides signed the new deal around 1 p.m. Thursday, shortly after the IOC’s executive board approved it during a regularly scheduled meeting. The USOC board signed off on it Wednesday night via conference call. The deal brings relief to the USOC on two fronts: It ensures the organization won’t get less revenue from television and sponsors than it currently does — barring an unforeseen collapse in either category — and it enables the USOC to send out a U.S. bid city for a future Olympic Games without fear it will get sabotaged by animosity over the previous agreement. International resentment over the old deal “It’s true, as long as the USOC did not recognize the problem with its relations with the rest of the Olympic movement, any bid would have gone with that handicap,” IOC Director General Christophe De Kepper said during a telephone call after the news conference. “Definitely I think it’s a good day for both parties. . . . Both parties need strong U.S. Olympic bids and Olympic Games . . . held in the

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Romney holds key advantages among financially struggling white voters

of campaign contributions. Romney, meanwhile, portrays the president as out of his depth on economic issues. And in the Republican’s current advertising campaign, he highlights steps he would take as president to roll back policies that the Obama administration has put into place. In the poll, Americans overall reported widespread economic pain, with more than seven in 10 saying they have been affected directly or indirectly by unemployment in the past few years. Four in 10 report struggling to maintain their socioeconomic status, with about one in five saying they are in the middle class and straining to stay there. Fifty percent of all voters On that question, Obama has an advantage of 53 percent to 41 percent among those who think their foothold in the middle class is relatively secure, while the two candidates divide about equally among those struggling to stay there. That overall parity, as has been the case in the past, disguises a vast racial divide. Among white voters trying to stay in the middle class, Romney is considered the better candidate for that group by a 20-point margin; Obama is preferred by better than 3 to 1 among middle-class nonwhite voters, regardless of their sense of security. Whites and nonwhites — as well as voters across party lines — agree that Romney would do more than Obama to advocate for the economic interests of wealthy Americans. By a 23-point margin, voters say it’s Romney, not Obama, who would do more to advance the interests of Wall Street. As for the new federal regulations for banks and other financial institutions put in place during the current administration, few voters — about one in four — say they have struck the right balance. About 25 percent of all voters say the regulations “go too far,” while 39 percent say “not far enough.” Most Democrats say the new rules are not sufficiently tough; among Republicans, twice as many say they are unnecessarily restrictive compared with those saying they are too lenient. Independents tilt in the “not far enough” direction. The telephone poll was conducted May 17 to 20 among a random national sample of 1,004 adults. The margin of sampling error for the full poll is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. The margin is four points for the sample of 874 registered voters. Polling analyst Scott Clement and polling manager Peyton M. Craighill contributed to this report.

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The tasting room is where it’s happening

Robert F. McDonnell dropped by Richmond’s Hardywood Park Craft Brewery to sign the bill into law and toss a few hops into a kettle. Eric McKay, a founder of Hardywood, says the law will promote tourism and encourage more start-ups. What’s more, he blogs, “With more breweries from the western part of the country looking to expand to the East Coast, more favorable beer laws will certainly make Virginia more competitive in attracting $20 million to $100 million-plus in expansion projects.” Steve Crandall, owner of the Devils Backbone brewpub in Roseland, Va., said he’s hiring three additional employees to staff the tasting room at his new production brewery in Lexington, Va., where his Vienna Lager and Eight Point IPA are packaged for the Northern Virginia market. Crandall says he hopes to host more events like the recent 600-guest fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity at the Lexington brewery. Bill Butcher, founder of Alexandria’s Port City Brewing, plans to throw a “pint party” on July 1, when SB 604 goes into effect. The change in law couldn’t come at a better time: he’s adding a second bar and doubling the taps. The new law has limitations. Breweries can sell only beer they make, not guest beers from other breweries. Lost Rhino Brewing in Ashburn will be able to dodge that restriction by applying for an on-premises license, says co-founder and head brewer Favio Garcia. The brewery also is installing a kitchen. Chef Becky Jordan, who used to work at the Capital Ale Houses in Richmond and Fredericksburg, will dish up a menu that includes cheese plates, barbecued duck tacos and Thai shrimp salad. “It’s not your typical pub fare,” laughs Garcia, who says the kitchen should be operational by the first week in June. Garcia will serve an experimental hoppy wheat ale dubbed Wild Farmwell Wheat. Garcia brewed the beer with the help of local home-brewers Peter Lee and Jasper Akerboom, scientists at nearby Janelia Farm Research Campus. Akerboom, a microbiologist, isolated a local yeast strain that was used to ferment the beer, which Garcia describes as “hoppy like an IPA” and earthy, but “not quite as sour as a lambic.” That’s typical of the business strategies small beermakers are employing: Offer your customers something unique and they’ll beat a path to your brewery, no matter how far out in the ’burbs or backwaters. Kitsock is the editor of Mid-Atlantic Brewing News.

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Getting a good meal in D.C. requires some ruthless economics

by the standards of major global cities. Second, a lot of Washington doesn’t have a very good public school system. Education-conscious Asian immigrants usually prefer the suburbs and that means D.C. proper doesn’t have a lot of first-rate Asian food. Finally, the highest-status people in town — the politicians — usually have, or at least feel inclined to demonstrate, remarkably conservative taste in food (President Obama has been a welcome exception). Finance professionals in New York and entertainment moguls in L.A. set a flashier and more innovative tone for their favored dining-out places. Washington does have its strengths. Namely, the city has a lot of high-income, highly educated transients. It attracts visitors, tourists, young interns and other workers who do a brief spell here but have no intention of staying. Because they come from all over, transients support food variety. Yet transients also encourage restaurants that build up their reputations rapidly to appeal to a busy, underinformed and sometimes underseasoned audience. Those same restaurants also tend to fall in quality relatively rapidly; even when they don’t go outright bad, they usually descend into the realm of the ordinary. Be the early bird The key is to hit these restaurants in the “sweet spot” of their cycle of rise and fall. At any point in time Washington probably has five to 10 excellent restaurants; they just don’t last very long at their highest levels of quality. Here’s how it works. A new chef opens a place or a well-known chef comes to town and starts up a branch. Good reviews are essential to get the place off the ground, and so they pull out all stops to make the opening three months, or six months, special. And it works. In today’s world of food blogs, Twitter and texting, the word gets out quickly. Which restaurants have held this crown? A partial recent list would include The Source, Zengo, Sei, Palena, Oyamel, Hook, Equinox and Central Michel Richard, among many others. They all had their moments of glory. Which places are peaking right now? I would nominate Little Serow and Rasika West. I have been seeing the right kind of stellar reviews for Mintwood Place (I have yet to visit). I had an excellent meal at Fiola a few months ago, but I’ve already heard reports of quality decline. I’ll continue to monitor the situation. Avoid the beautiful people Through information technology,

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Does military service still matter for the presidency?

service is increasingly limited to a small swath of volunteers, widely admired but little known. Early in our nation’s history, Americans fought to claim a continent both from its native inhabitants and from foreign powers that coveted its riches. Fighting for the country was a regular part of the American experience, and excellence in that service was one way to demonstrate leadership to the nation. The pool of citizens who were veterans was broadened by the draft during the Civil War and both World Wars, increasing the number of political candidates with military service and the connection voters felt to contenders with whom they had shared the experience of combat. Everyone respected those who had served — and perhaps even looked down a bit on those who had not been a part of America’s battles. That relationship broke down during the Vietnam War, when not all segments of society were called upon to fight. When Johnson chose not to mobilize the National Guard for combat duty, it became a refuge for the sons of the elite who were avoiding war. James Fallows has written, movingly and guiltily, of how the most privileged Americans found ways to avoid the draft, sending the less fortunate to war in their place. The long conflict in Southeast Asia tore the United States in two, destroying an effective consensus about the use of American power abroad. The soldier became the symbol of an unpopular war. Presidential candidates who had answered the nation’s call struggled to connect with voters who often hated the war that had helped form them. Gore played down his service in Vietnam during his bid for the White House, while Kerry’s service became a liability; although he was one of a few candidates to have been wounded in combat, he was “swift boated” by opponents who questioned some details of his service. No American veteran of any earlier war, let alone another recipient of several Purple Heart medals, would have been treated this way. But this black mark on America’s treatment of its veterans is fading. In the wake of Vietnam, the country chose to meet its national security needs with a force composed entirely of professionals who had volunteered for duty. This force has proved enormously capable — triumphing in Desert Storm, easily defeating both the Taliban rulers and Saddam Hussein’s army, and demonstrating adaptability when performing counterinsurgency in Iraq and

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Book review: Michael Mann’s ‘The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars’

When it comes to key warriors in America’s battle over the causes of climate change, few rival Pennsylvania State University professor Michael E. Mann. Mann, who directs the Penn State Earth System Science Center, led a 1998 reconstruction of temperature records going back thousands of years and showing that global averages had shot up in recent decades. Featured in a 2001 report by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the chart resembled a hockey stick, with the ancient temperatures running along the handle and the latest figures rising sharply at the base. It sparked intense debate over the human contribution to global warming and transformed Mann from a geeky geophysicist into a public fighter in a bruising political and legal war over how to conduct science and public policy. Much of the industrial and developing world accepts the scientific consensus that the burning of fossil fuels, and other activities that release heat-trapping greenhouse gases, contribute to climate change; on Friday, the International Energy Agency announced that global carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel burning had reached a record high of 31.6 gigatons in 2011, up 3.2 percent from 2010. A March survey by Gallup shows that 53 percent of Americans attribute global warming to human activity. But in the past three years, some Americans have challenged this view, particularly conservative Republicans, and the political elite is sharply divided. Some advocates have gone so far as to hack computers and steal the e-mails of Mann and other climate researchers in an effort to undermine global climate negotiations. A respected hydrologist retaliated by tricking a climate-skeptic group into releasing its internal documents. Mann’s new book, “The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars,” is part of a series of attempts by activists and others to answer the question of why global warming has become a political flash point. Mann has devised an analogy to explain why he and other researchers have become the objects of such fierce public scrutiny and vilification, which he terms “the Serengeti strategy.” Likening climate scientists to zebras, he writes, “The climate change deniers isolate individual scientists just as predators on the Serengeti Plain of Africa hunt their prey: picking off vulnerable individuals from the rest of the herd.” He asserts that he and others have become targets because their findings challenge the entrenched fossil-fuel industries, which have tried to discredit them. "The Hockey Stick and the Climate

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It’s not the breed. It’s the behavior.

The answer is simple — they’ve learned from experience. Here’s what the town of North Beach, in Calvert County, paid taxpayer dollars to find out: There is, as Councilman Ken Wilcox stated, “no practical way to prove whether the dog that attacked is in fact a ‘pit bull.’ ” Wilcox is correct, despite the popular perception. Visual identification is highly subjective and inaccurate; DNA testing is costly and usually unhelpful. There simply is no consensus among experts about what is and isn’t a pit bull. But that doesn’t mean we’re unable to use the law to protect our communities from dangerous animals. North Beach officials have concluded that investigating the actions of animals is a much better use of their resources and a more effective method of protecting the public than is engaging in a fruitless effort to determine a particular dog’s breed. If only that lesson would be heeded in Prince George’s County, whose ban on pit bulls has proved just as problematic as North Beach’s. It has not reduced the number of pit bulls that arrive at the county shelter each year, a strong indicator of how many are still out in the community. It has resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in enforcement, kenneling and other costs. And it has had little effect on public safety. Commonplace behavior-based dog control laws — targeting at-large, dangerous, potentially dangerous and nuisance animals — are all that we need, so long as animal-control bodies have the resources to enforce them aggresively. In Baltimore in the 1970s, dog bites numbered around 6,500 a year. When the city enacted strong behavior-based animal-control laws, bites declined. A lot. Today, there are 90 percent fewer bites recorded in Baltimore than 40 years ago. Similar trends can be noted in New York and other large U.S. cities. Prince George’s, too, has behavior-based animal-control laws that cover just about any transgression a dog can commit, no matter the breed or what the dog looks like. The Prince George’s County Council should follow North Beach’s lead and eschew its breed ban for stronger enforcement of behavior-based animal control. The money it saves can be used to hire more teachers, firefighters or even animal-control officers. The writer is president of the Maryland Dog Federation. In 2002 and 2003, she served on a task force convened to study the effect of Prince George’s County’s pit bull ban.

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Running With the Kenyans: Passion, Adventure, and the Secrets of the Fastest People on Earth by Adharanand Finn

he’s distraught to see Kenyans striding comfortably in the footwear he’s been struggling to do without. The family rents a house in Iten, which lies in an area that is arguably the geographic center of long-distance running. They hire a guard, although almost everybody is kind to the Muzungus (whites). Home-grown and visiting running stars are thick on the ground. Even Joan Benoit is there with her son, Anders. She won the gold medal for the first Olympic women’s marathon in 1984. Caught in the first boom of adult-onset running fanatics during the late 1970s, I ran 60 marathons before I stopped counting. I still run at least one a year and wanted to visit the Rift Valley in the same way some Catholics want to visit the Vatican. My trip was led by John Manners, a man who could — and should — write a book about Kenyan runners. A transplanted baseball fan, John came to Kenya with his anthropologist father when he was 12 years old and saw the promise of the country’s world dominance in running, before the world had any idea. He’s one of many whom Finn interviews in his quest for secrets. The children who run to school here are fast, Finn learns, because if they’re late they’ll be caned. So toughness is one secret. Another is elevation — running in thin air increases the blood’s ability to absorb oxygen. The doughy dish ugali, made of cornmeal, may not figure in Kenyans’ running success, but there may be something in how little of anything they have to eat. They are hungry, but also hungry to win, and running is one of a very few ways to earn cash in a country without much. Rest is another secret. Lornah Kipligat, who has held several world records and operates a training center in Iten, is famous for sleeping 16 hours a day. Finn and his newfound African friends all run the Lewa marathon, which is held in a wildlife reserve. Helicopters are used to distract the lions. He’s not as fast as he had hoped, but we mustn’t judge his transformation until he returns to the developed world and finishes the New York Marathon. How did he do? Well, that’s my secret. bookworld@washpost.com Benjamin Cheever RUNNING WITH THE KENYANS Passion, Adventure, and the Secrets of the Fastest People on Earth By Adharanand Finn Ballantine. 265 pp. $26

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Realtors urge Congress to keep tax breaks for homeowners

to TransUnion, was 826, indicating minimal risk of default. Yet the bank “told me it could not make the loan because, even though I have sufficient [liquid] assets and a high credit score,” his monthly Social Security payments, bank deposits, checking accounts and 401(k) plan “were not enough.” How common is Eberle’s experience? Conversations with mortgage lenders and analysts suggest it is happening more frequently, thanks to some large banks that are ratcheting up their underwriting standards so tightly that the old joke — they’ll only lend to people who don’t really need the money — is beginning to resemble reality for some borrowers. Eberle said he was willing to pull out funds from his checking and banking deposits and set them aside to make up any perceived monthly income shortfalls. “I was willing to do whatever it took,” he said. But the bank still said no. Mortgage market experts, such as Dennis C. Smith, co-owner of Stratis Financial in Huntington Beach, Calif., are not surprised at Eberle’s experience. Smith had a recent client — a physician with $2.5 million in bank accounts who was seeking a $350,000 loan — who was rejected by one lender because the deposits, which were proceeds from an inheritance, had been in his account for just eight months. That was too short a period to satisfy the bank’s pristine and unyielding standard. Part of the problem, according to Smith, appears to be overcorrections by some banks to the lax underwriting that characterized the years leading up to the housing bust — especially see-no-evil practices such as “stated income,” where the loan officer accepted the monthly income number provided by the applicant with no verification. But another factor, said Bruce Calabrese, president and co-founder of Equitable Mortgage in Columbus, Ohio, is that some loan officers aren’t aware of techniques available for qualifying retirees who are asset-rich but income-deficient. For example, Calabrese’s firm employs “annuitization” procedures acceptable to Fannie Mae to help borrowers over 591 / 2 qualify on income tests using their IRA and other retirement account balances. “We take 70 percent of the total value of the funds and then spread them out over 360 months if the loan is a 30-year fixed and 180 months if the loan is a 15-year fixed. We also gross up their Social Security by [a factor of] 1.25 . . . . So if they get $1,000

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SpaceX’s Dragon capsule docks with international space station

did both this week and made it look easy. “It’s been a remarkable ride,” Michael Suffredini, NASA’s space station manager, said shortly after Dragon’s docking. After a two-hour delay to fix a balky laser range finder on Dragon, two station astronauts — American Don Pettit and Dutchman Andre Kuipers — lassoed the capsule with a giant robotic arm at 9:56 a.m. “Looks like we’ve got us a dragon by the tail,” Pettit quipped from 250 miles above Australia. Cheers erupted in two mission control rooms — at NASA in Houston and SpaceX headquarters near Los Angeles. Video feeds showed the casually dressed SpaceX team high-fiving and hugging. Elon Musk, the company’s usually voluble founder, later said he had no words for the “moment of elation.” Two hours later, the station astronauts snuggled Dragon into a docking port. Mission nearly complete. “In my 20 years with NASA, rarely did things go that smoothly,” said Michael Lopez-Alegria, a former space station commander and president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, an industry group. “And they never go that smoothly the very first time.” He added, “I’m not sure I would’ve put money on it two weeks ago.” He had reason to worry. Conceived in 2006 as a space shuttle replacement, NASA’s commercial spaceflight program is three years behind schedule. The SpaceX mission was repeatedly delayed since last year, most recently Saturday, when the Falcon 9 rocket’s engines fired and then squelched on the launchpad because of a bad valve. But on Tuesday, the rocket finally soared atop an arc of orange. It was the second SpaceX mission for the Dragon capsule. In December 2010, a Dragon orbited the Earth and splashed down off the California coast. On Friday, Musk sat in front of that first, scorched Dragon as SpaceX workers chanted his name, shouting, “We love Elon!” For weeks, the Internet millionaire had been scaling back expectations, saying this was a test flight, a shake-down mission. But at a post-docking news briefing, Musk beamed and repeated his ambition to fly people to Mars and beyond. “This was a crucial step,” he said, toward spreading humanity to other planets. “The chance of that just went up dramatically.” While more circumspect, NASA and White House officials also heralded the day. Presidential science adviser John P. Holdren, in a statement, called the moment “an achievement of historic scientific and technological significance” and “a key milepost in

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BSO’s Ninth Symphony not perfect, but it still stirs the blood

It’s been less than three years since the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra performed Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony at Strathmore, but here it was again, on Saturday evening. In 2009, the orchestra’s frequent guest conductor, Gunter Herbig, led a restrained but highly cultured reading, with a particularly outstanding contribution from the Baltimore Choral Arts Society. Under the baton of Peter Oundjian, Saturday’s performance was more vigorous, if less nuanced. The program, which paired the Ninth with Anton Bruckner’s “Te Deum,” again showcased the remarkable Baltimore chorus, led by Tom Hall. Rather than sitting together by section, singers of different voice types are placed randomly throughout the chorus. While this presents real challenges to a conductor, who needs to communicate with particular sections at key moments, it makes each singer feel more individually responsible for delivering his or her part accurately. It also improves blend. The voices rang out with resplendent confidence, and the sopranos had no apparent difficulty reaching the cruel and challenging high B’s in the piece. The chorus’s performance was the best part of the concert. Oundjian is a world-class musician and, of course, the BSO knows the piece well, but the orchestra was a little strait-laced. There was an unfortunate wrong note in the brass at the opening of the finale, and in loud spots the texture became generally opaque. Kudos to the woodwinds, though, for alert, colorful playing in the scherzo. Of the vocal soloists, soprano Joyce El-Khoury was the most centered and reliable. Bass Morris Robinson had clarion power but a slightly metallic color. Tenor Nicholas Phan, a last minute fill-in, seemed to be working the hardest but did not project a steady musical line. All that said, the thunderous power of this unique masterpiece never fails to stir the blood, and the ovation was loud, long and well deserved. Battey is a freelance writer.

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Memorial Day

protect the “ ‘warrior’ myth.” Perhaps; the fog of war often extends far beyond the battlefield. In any event, the film, “Let There Be Light,” has just been made available in a restored version with a much-improved soundtrack and can now be seen for what it is: not a tribute to film-making or freedom of expression but a memorial. “These are the casualties of the spirit, the troubled in mind, men who are damaged emotionally,” says the narrator (the director’s father, Walter Huston), men who “in the fulfillment of their duties as soldiers were forced beyond the limits of human endurance.” Some no doubt recovered fully, others not at all. The truth is, as we are being reminded every day by this century’s conflicts, that the mental anguish of war can be as murderous as flying steel and high explosives. Its victims are personally memorialized in faces on film long after they are gone (as most of them are by now). Not just the the faces in this film — somber, confused, hopeful or hardened — but the bearded, helmeted unshaven faces staring vacantly past the camera into some far distance. How many of them made it all the way back? Memorial Day was, in its beginnings, a popular observance that developed spontaneously after the Civil War, when families began the custom of decorating the graves of their Union and Confederate dead on one particular day or another in springtime. These were people who could have had no illusions about the glories of war or the greatness of any Cause — not after approximately 620,000 dead and who knows how many more physically maimed, disabled or “casualties of the spirit.” Memorial Day was not then, and is not today, about victories won, national glory or the greatness of the armed forces. It is essentially the fulfillment of a personal obligation to remember — to say of someone we knew, or loved or whose name we read on a plaque or whose troubled face we see in a long-ago documentary film: You lost all, or nearly all, before your time had come, but you shall not be forgotten. More on this debate: John Nagl: Does military service still matter for the presidency? Photo gallery: Honoring the Vietnam War’s fallen Bruce Hill (letter): Start a new Memorial Day tradition Andy Smith: Memorial Day a time for prayers of remembrance from all faiths

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Program recruits older vets for employment training

Cheryl Blackburn, an Army veteran, had previously held jobs in customer service and as a security contractor, but is also unemployed. She recently signed up for the Veteran Retraining Assistance Program. (U.S. Department of Labor) For Cheryl Blackburn, an Army veteran who lost her job as a leasing consultant in March, the search for new employment has been frustrating. “I wanted to get back in government, but everybody said you needed a degree,” said Blackburn, a D.C. resident who once worked as a security consultant for the State Department. “I had the experience, but I needed the degree.” Blackburn, 51, of Southeast, is one of the first veterans in the country to sign up for a new program offered jointly by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Labor Department aimed at retraining up to 99,000 older veterans for high-demand jobs. The program, known as the Veteran Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP), targets unemployed veterans between the ages of 35 and 60. The program is a key part of the VOW to Hire Heroes Act passed by Congress and signed by President Obama late last year. Blackburn hopes to use the program to earn a degree in finance at the University of the District of Columbia or Northern Virginia Community College. Julius Ware II, formerly an Army sergeant, had once run his own electrical company and had held a job in public works for a Maryland town but is currently unemployed. Ware recently signed up for the Veteran Retraining Assistance Program. (U.S. Department of Labor) “This important tool will help those who served our country receive the education and training they need to find meaningful employment in a high-demand field,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki said upon the program’s May 15 launch. Much of the focus on reducing veterans’ unemployment has been on Iraq-Afghanistan-era service members, who face the highest levels of joblessness. A report released Thursday by Congress’s Joint Economic Committee said that unemployment among veterans ages 18 to 24 was more than 30 percent in 2011, nearly double that of non-veterans and significantly higher than that of veterans from other eras. By contrast, the unemployment rate of veterans ages 35 to 44 was 7.2 percent in 2011, and 7.6 percent for those 45 to 54. Nonetheless, nearly two-thirds of all unemployed veterans are over 35, noted Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.), chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. In

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Edens reveals vendors for Union Market

With the opening of Union Market a week away, developer Edens has released the lineup of vendors for the District’s new gourmet marketplace. Twelve local and regional culinarians, peddling everything from oysters to cheese, will operate the first stands in the indoor bazaar at 1309 5th St. NE. Area food trucks D.C. Empanadas and TaKorean will each have a booth, as will gelato shop Dolecezza, Peregrine Espresso and Oh Pickles! Dairy lovers can get their fill from Chambersburg, Pa.-based Trickling Springs Creamery and Carolyn Stromberg’s Righteous Cheese. Red Apron Butchery will supply charcuterie, while Lyon Bakery serves up handcrafted loaves of bread. Rappahannock River Oysters Edens tapped chef Richard Brandenburg, a ThinkFoodGroup alumnus, to devise a culinary strategy for the market. Inspired by San Francisco’s Ferry Building, which houses a rotating roster of vendors and restaurants, Union Market will in time contain 40 vendors, a third of which will be permanent, Edens president Jodi McLean said. “There is this preconception outside of D.C. that we don’t have a food culture,” she said, during an interview at the International Council of Shopping Centers’ convention in Las Vegas last week. “We have this opportunity to really expose to the world what a great food culture is developing in D.C., so the retailers going in [the market] are exceptional people.” Commonly known as the Capital City Market, the site on which Union Market is being built was once part of a wholesale and retail district for poultry and produce. The old market, opened in the 1920s, remained operational, in one form or another, until Edens began renovations. The South Carolina-based developer, which is behind the Mosaic District in Merrifield, entered a joint venture with J Street to purchase the site in 2007. The partnership controls six parcels along 5th and 6th streets NE between Florida and New York avenues. The entire site is being re-branded the Union Market District as a nod to the historic name for the area. The marketplace is the first phase of a redevelopment that is to eventually include housing and a hotel. McLean said Edens is renovating a nearby 26,000-square-foot warehouse to serve as a wholesale distribution and food production center. “We want to establish Union Market as a place of quality, authenticity to it’s roots, and attract a much broader community,” she said. “This project can really help transition D.C. from being a great city to a

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Medical students learned on the bodies, and now honor the donors

clotting the internal structures. She held it under running water at a nearby sink. She was focused on her task, but she also realized she was holding a human heart in her hands. “It’s unreal,” she said. “It’s hard to imagine.” Finding the anatomical structure can be frustrating because every body is different. When Table 13 was looking for a nerve that controls the primary muscle used in breathing — it looks like a yellowish-white flat shoelace — one student used her iPhone, protected in a zippered plastic baggie, to consult an interactive electronic guide. But discovery is exciting. “You almost gasp,” said John Nolan, 23, a first-year student who was also one of nine teaching assistants for the class. “You have that ‘aha’ moment, and everything starts to click. This artery is leading to here, which gives blood to this part, and you can follow it the whole way.” Discoveries inevitably lead to more questions. “I’m curious to know how she lived to 102,” said Bridget Kaufman, 23, bending over the chest cavity of her table’s cadaver. The heart was in good condition. Her lungs “were really clean,” she said. No cancer. Had the woman been rich and led a pampered life, Kaufman wondered, “or did she live so long because of genetics?” Harder for students to process were the moments when they see glimpses of nail polish, feel a strand of hair, and especially, touch fingers and hands. Mark Real, 22, became momentarily unnerved when his hand accidently slipped into a handshake with the table’s cadaver, a 94-year-old woman. “It felt very familiar,” he said. “I stepped back for a second. I had to compose myself.” His tablemate, Mark Mario­renzi, 24, had a similar experience when he touched her hair. “That’s when you realize that it’s not an objective lab like we’re used to in biochemistry,” he said. “You get flooded with emotions, of your own mortality, of loss and sorrow.” Rules for donations Medical schools don’t pay for body donations. Georgetown’s medical school gets about 225 requests a year from people who want to donate. Some restrictions apply — no autopsies, no major surgeries, no bodies weighing more than 200 pounds. Also excluded are those outside a 50-mile radius from Georgetown, unless the family can pay for transportation. Bodies are typically used 18 to 24 months after donation. Most donors choose to remain anonymous. All remains are

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Why Army women are demanding the right to fight — and die — in combat

are expendable. And women are willing to accept greater risks to reap the greater opportunities that come with those risks, she said. In the past 10 years, about 283,000 women have been deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. More than 800 have been injured and 139 have been killed, according to an April report by the Congressional Research Service. There are about 250,000 jobs in the U.S. military that remain closed to women. Haring encountered those locked doors as soon as she graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1984. “I couldn’t go into Ranger School,” she said. “I wanted to test myself, I was all gung-ho Army, but I couldn’t do that.” Instead, she became a platoon leader, commander, executive officer and bridge commander. She is now a joint concept officer for the Joint and Coalition Warfighting Center in Suffolk, Va. Her options, her lawsuit declares, “were limited to support positions with no possibility to compete within the combat arms.” Funny thing is, though women such as Haring don’t get to go to the fabled Ranger School and train with the elite, they are nevertheless fighting and dying alongside the Rangers. And that’s one of the key points in the lawsuit. Take the story of 1st Lt. Ashley White, a 24-year-old from Ohio. She was embedded with an Army Ranger unit in Kandahar province in Afghanistan when she and two Rangers were killed by a roadside bomb, Haring told me. White was with the unit because she could do things — such as frisk women in burqas — that men couldn’t. “Women like her do this all the time,” Haring explained. The Army is going around the no-combat rule by attaching women to these units. It’s a bogus way to do it. “They go into these units with a lack of training, and they are at greater risk without that training,” Haring said. So, yes, women are unofficially in combat, through the back door and without the training they need. That’s one of Haring’s biggest concerns. “I’ve also been reading some studies on group intelligence,” she said. And in all the studies, a group of mixed genders always showed superior intelligence to single-sex groups. Women add a different perspective, a different way of thinking and analyzing. “I can’t tell you how many times I have walked into a meeting and I’m the only woman in the room,”

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Obama salutes troops on Memorial Day, calls for war only when ‘absolutely necessary’

Afghanistan. Obama has also emphasized how he has increased funds for the Department of Veterans Affairs, implemented the post-Sept. 11 G.I. Bill and launched job programs for returning troops. On Monday, Obama’s speeches honoring the nation’s war dead touched on those actions and praised veterans for their contributions. At Arlington cemetery’s Tomb of the Unknowns, amid solemn performances of the national anthem and “Taps,” the president recognized both the first and the final casualties of the war in Iraq, alluding to his own stewardship of a conflict that he had promised in 2008 to end. He also pledged Monday to go to war only with a “clear mission,” with the support of the nation and when “absolutely necessary.” At the Vietnam memorial ceremony, which actor Tom Selleck presided over as master of ceremonies, Obama delivered a lengthy speech in which he addressed some of that war’s most painful legacies. He described the treatment of returning Vietnam veterans as a “national shame, a disgrace that should have never happened.” He promised to do “everything in our power” to continue the effort to find those still missing in action and to provide the necessary benefits to disabled veterans, those afflicted by the effects of Agent Orange and post-traumatic stress syndrome, and those struggling to find jobs. He celebrated the valor of Vietnam veterans and credited them for the nation’s appreciation of those who have served in more recent conflicts. “Because of you, because our Vietnam veterans led the charge, the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill is helping hundreds of thousands of today’s veterans go to college and pursue their dreams,” Obama said. “Because of you, because you didn’t let us forget, at our airports, our returning troops get off the airplane and you are there to shake their hands. Because of you, across America, communities have welcomed home our forces from Iraq. And when our troops return from Afghanistan, America will give this entire 9/11 generation the welcome home they deserve. That happened in part because of you.” If the polls don’t show Obama making inroads among veterans, his efforts to court this constituency at the very least are pushing Romney to pay attention to a voting group that Republicans historically have been able to count on for support. In San Diego, Romney did not appear to be taking veterans’ backing for granted, however. He spoke about visiting Afghanistan and Iraq while he was

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Supercomputer will help researchers map climate change down to the local level

An advance guard of 18-wheelers is scheduled to roll into a business park in Cheyenne, Wyo., this week to unload components of a supercomputer called Yellowstone. This 1.5-quadrillion-calculations-per-second crystal ball will model future climate and forecast extreme weather. “It’s a big deal,” said climate scientist Linda Mearns of the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo. Yellowstone will help researchers calculate climate change on a regional, rather than continental, scale. With a better grasp of how warming may affect local water resources, endangered species and extreme winds, local and state governments will be able to plan more effectively. Marika Holland, chief scientist for NCAR’s Community Earth System Modeling Project, said the new supercomputer is “close to a game-changer. We’ve had incremental improvements in our computational resources over time, but . . . Yellowstone is a whole new scale, and there are things that we will be able to explore that just were not possible before.” As climate models become more complex and detailed, limited computing power bottlenecks the research. Broad-brush models use less power, but they often cannot consider details that drive local climate, such as complex coastlines or the mountain ranges and valleys that affect rainfall. Researchers refer to this as a problem of “model resolution.” “If you have an old digital camera that doesn’t have as many megapixels as a new one, you want to get that [new] camera because it takes sharper pictures, and you can store a lot more pictures on it,” said Richard Loft, a director in the computing lab at NCAR. “It’s the same thing with Yellowstone. We’ve increased our ability to generate more-detailed pictures of the climate system, so we get a sharper, crisper view of things.” Seven-square-mile ‘pixels’ Yellowstone will be able to generate climate projections for seven-square-mile “pixels,” instead of the 60-square-mile units typically in use now. “We’ve already had the model resolution to confirm the warming of the planet but not to talk about the winners and losers at the regional scale,” Loft said. The new computer will cost about $30 million; it will be operated by NCAR, which is funded by the National Science Foundation. And just like your own computer, it is likely to be obsolete and ready for replacement by a faster model in about four years. Yellowstone and its successors will allow modelers to provide a more reliable range of possible answers for local climate

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Russia warns of retaliation over U.S. Magnitsky bill

cannot stop the Magnitsky bill and will have to deal with the anger of the Russian leadership. If Ushakov’s remarks were designed to encourage a presidential veto of the bill, they are unlikely to succeed, given the difficulty the White House would face in killing a human rights measure. It could come out of committee as early as next month, according to a congressional official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. Sergei Magnitsky was a lawyer arrested and charged with the fraud who died in jail in 2009, possibly from a beating.The ”Magnitsky” bill in Congress would place sanctions on Russian officials connected to human rights abuses. (Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP) Sergei Magnitsky was a lawyer who accused tax officials of orchestrating a $230 million fraud against the government. He was arrested and charged with the fraud himself and died in jail in 2009, possibly from a beating. Cardin’s bill has infuriated top Russian officials, most of whom apparently keep their sizable personal fortunes in dollar bank accounts. “It hits them where it hurts,” Cardin said. It is designed to replace the 1974 Jackson-Vanik amendment, which was aimed at forcing the Soviet Union to allow freer emigration of Jews and other religious minorities. Ushakov said Wednesday that Russia would prefer to live with the anti-Soviet Jackson-Vanik measure than to have it replaced by the anti-Russian Magnitsky bill. Angela Stent, a professor of Russian studies at Georgetown University, said at a recent forum that Cardin’s bill is a feel-good measure that might have unexpected, and unwelcome, consequences. Cardin called the State Department’s decision last summer to deny visas to Russians connected to Magnitsky’s death — without publishing their names — a good start. “But we need a list because we need to shame,” he said. “Unless you list names, you don’t get the response you need.” On Friday, U.S. Ambassador Michael McFaul said in a speech to university students in Moscow that he drew up the as-yet unpublished roster of affected officials and that it includes some who are associated not with the Magnitsky case but with other violations. That speech brought a torrent of critical tweets from the Russian Foreign Ministry. The complaints weren’t strictly about the Magnitsky list, but they revived a publicity campaign against McFaul that had died down since March. “Utterly shocked,” one tweet said. “Ambassadors’ job, as we understand it,

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Iran acknowledges that Flame virus has infected computers nationwide

Speaking on Israel’s Army Radio, Moshe Yaalon, the vice prime minister and minister for strategic affairs, said the virus was “apparently” state sponsored. “Whoever sees the Iranian threat as a significant threat — and it’s not only Israel, it’s the whole Western world, led by the United States — it’s certainly reasonable that he uses all means at his disposal, including these, to harm the Iranian nuclear system,” Yaalon said. He added, “Israel is blessed with being a country rich in high-tech, and from that perspective, these achievements we take pride in, both in the civilian sector and defense sector, open up very many opportunities.” White House spokesman Jay Carney declined to comment, as did a spokesman for the CIA; officials at the Defense Department referred questions to the Department of Homeland Security. A spokesman for the DHS said the department has been made aware of the malware and is working with other U.S. agencies to analyze its potential impact on the United States. Security researchers say Flame is capable to logging keyboard strokes, activating microphones to record conversations and taking screen shots. Experts have cautioned that it is far too early to draw conclusions about who might have created the virus and why. “There’s a lot of guessing going on out there, and I don’t think a lot of it is based on facts,” said Jody Westby, chief executive of Global Cyber Risk, a consulting firm. Iran was among several countries that about a week ago reported the infection to a U.N. agency responsible for communications technology, the International Telecommunication Union, said Mohd Amin, head of the ITU’s global cyber-center, which analyzes and shares data on cyber-threats. The ITU asked the Russian-based Kaspersky Lab, which provides software to clients around the world, to investigate. Kaspersky checked its database and found samples of the virus in countries across the Middle East. Iran had the highest number of infections, followed by Israel and the Palestinian territories, then Sudan, Syria and Lebanon, according to the firm, whose database is limited to infections reported by its clients. Kaspersky also has detected a few infections in Europe and the United States, but it is unclear whether those reflect people in the Middle East accessing the Internet through U.S. and European servers to circumvent Web filters, said Kaspersky Lab senior researcher Roel Schouwenberg. Special correspondent Joel Greenberg in Jerusalem contributed to this report. More national

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Helping veterans find work in a tight job market

SANDY, UT - NOVEMBER 4: Margarita Angelo (R) of Zions Bank talks to Veteran Robert Ryan (L) who is looking for a job at the "Hiring Our Heroes" job fair November 4, 2011 at the South Towne Expo Center in Sandy, Utah. The job fair which had over 100 employers, was for veterans and current active duty military looking for jobs and was sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Monster’s Military.com is the official online partner of the program. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images) (George Frey/GETTY IMAGES) Military veterans face a major communications gap when looking for jobs in the civilian world. That’s what a survey from Monster.com, one of the world’s leading job sites, found when it took a deeper look at how veterans fare in the job market once they leave military service. On Wednesday, Monster released the Veterans Talent Index, a report based on surveys of veterans looking for work and of the employers who are seeking to hire them. This is the second index the company has done; Monster plans to revisit the project every six months or so. “We created the VTI to shine a light on the problems that vets are having in finding jobs,” said Steve Cooker, Monster’s executive vice president and head of global government solutions. Veterans’ confidence in being able to find a job is dropping, the study found, as they face a tough job market. The unemployment rate is particularly high for 18- to 24-year-old veterans, said Jeff Quinn, Monster Worldwide’s vice president of global insights. They are finding it tough to compete for scarce jobs against peers who have not served in the military but instead have a few years of additional education or work experience under their belts. Cooker said the problem will only get larger as government budget cuts prompt more people look for jobs outside of the military. But those moving into civilian life also find it difficult to talk convincingly about how their military skills can translate to other fields of work. : Jobs jackpot: 20 occupations expected to grow the most through 2020: Here’s a look at the wide-ranging occupations expected to have “the most job growth” between 2010 and 2020, according to the Bureau Labor of Statistics. T.L. “T” McCreary, president of the Monster-affiliated Military.com and a retired rear admiral, said that it’s often difficult for a veteran to get out of

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In test for Europe, Ireland votes on fiscal treaty

national vote — making this country of 4.5 million the only euro-zone member forced to put the treaty to the test at the ballot box. The most recent opinion polls show Thursday’s vote is up for grabs, with 39 percent in favor, 30 percent against and 31 percent undecided or inclined to stay home. A rejection by Irish voters would not kill the treaty, which needs only 12 of the 17 nations that share the euro to ratify it in order for it to take effect. But a no vote in Ireland could deal the treaty a symbolically powerful blow, fueling even more opposition in countries such as France, where Hollande has insisted that it must be renegotiated to put more emphasis on growth. If the Irish do say no, a treaty provision would cut the country off from future bailouts, setting up a potential showdown with the E.U. late next year, by which time many analysts believe Ireland will require a second financial lifeline. Nationalists’ advantage Nevertheless, in a country with a history of rejecting E.U. treaties, the Irish referendum has become an easy springboard for nationalists — who, as they have in Greece, are successfully tapping into the anti-austerity sentiment. Inside a standing-room-only meeting hall in downtown Dublin this week, Gerry Adams — head of Sinn Fein, long seen as the political wing of the Irish Republican Army — held court as the man of the hour. With Sinn Fein the only major party to oppose the treaty here, Adams has surged in voter surveys to the point where he is now the most popular politician in Ireland. At 37 percent, his approval ratings best even those of Kenny. And even if Irish voters approve the treaty, political analysts say, one side effect of the referendum could be a new era of strength for Sinn Fein. After a stirring performance by an Irish folk singer, Adams offered up a speech that seemed to associate the “bureaucrats in Brussels” with Ireland’s former British occupiers. “We need to seize the moment,” he said to thunderous applause. “If something is bad for your country, you need to say ‘no’ to it.” More world news coverage: - British high court denies Assange appeal of extradition to Sweden - In Greece, church’s tangled ties with government raise questions - In Yemen, U.S. airstrikes breed anger - Read more headlines from around the world

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Recruiting veterans for government service

veterans and the hiring organizations were getting their needs met.” Kennedy also led the effort to create the Feds Hire Vets website to provide a single-point for employment information for veterans, their families, human resources staff and hiring managers; launched a government-wide marketing campaign on the value of hiring veterans; conducted veterans employment symposiums for HR professionals and hiring managers; and created web-based training modules on veterans appointing authorities and veterans preference. The overall strategy has been pro-active and involved innovative programs. For example, a Vets to Feds Career Development Program was created that has facilitated the hiring and placement of student veterans in agencies where they are trained for entry-level contracting positions, and get full salaries and benefits at the same time. The OPM group is also working on a pilot program with the Departments of Labor and Veterans Affairs to help formerly homeless veterans match their skills and interests to federal job opportunities. Additionally, they began a new initiative to match unemployed veterans in the medical and nursing fields with jobs at the Departments of Health and Human Services, Veterans Affairs, and the Food and Drug Administration. The team also has made great strides inside OPM, where 39.6 percent (262) of the individuals hired in fiscal 2011 were veterans. OPM opened a Veterans Employment Program Office at its headquarters outfitted with assistive technology and staffed to help veterans, including those with disabilities, who are seeking federal employment at OPM or elsewhere in the government. Kennedy said veterans have given a great deal to the nation through their service and sacrifice, and have a lot to offer government agencies based on their training and technical and leadership skills. In carrying out the presidential executive order, Kennedy said his goal has been to create a “value proposition” that involves assisting those who have served our country and providing government agencies with qualified employees. “We are putting highly-skilled and deserving veterans back to work, which makes a difference in their lives and the lives of their families, while helping the United States government meet its important challenges,” said Kennedy. “That’s a win-win situation. It is what gets me up and going every day.” This article was jointly prepared by the Partnership for Public Service, a group seeking to enhance the performance of the federal government, and washingtonpost.com. Go to http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/fedpage/players/ to read about other federal workers who are making a difference.

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Prince George’s County Animal Watch

Prince George’s County The following cases were received recently by the Prince George’s County Department of Environmental Resources Animal Management Group. Call 301-780-7200 for directions to the county animal shelter, hours of operation and adoption and licensing procedures. The shelter’s Web site is www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/der/amg. Dog struck by car: Kitten on side of building: Sick kitty: Snake on the move: Howling pup: Forestville vaccination clinic Sunday: — Compiled by Jillian S. Sowah

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Christoph Eschenbach and National Symphony Orchestra are having fun

Fund), this piece was short. And like many short works by eager young composers, it was so overfreighted with ideas and so eager to make its point that it sometimes got a little tedious. Stylistically, the piece follows the polymathic, exuberant, slightly slick model that’s become a kind of default for young American orchestral composers striving to show proficiency on the one hand and a wide range of influences on the other — in this case from John Adams to jazz to cartoons (my companion likened its helter-skelter progress to a Disney chase). Its strongest moment came toward the end, when the textures thinned out and a quartet of principal strings, backed up by winds, allowed some air to come in for the first time since the plucked pizzicato of the opening was answered by the humid lowering of brass. Still, it’s a good sign when a young artist’s best moment is in the slow part, which is usually harder to pull off. And there’s no question that Shepherd is a composer worth watching and hearing, even if this particular piece might not be the one that you want to hear over and over again. The night also marked some transitions for the orchestra, honoring the impending retirement of three musicians who, together, have chalked up 119 years of service: the principal flutist, Toshiko Kohno; the cellist David Howard; and the principal percussionist, F. Anthony Ames, who joined the orchestra in 1968. With the impending departure of the principal horn player, Martin Hackleman, who is leaving to take a teaching position at the University of Missouri, this means changes of three principal positions, which will give Eschenbach a chance to put his stamp even more on this orchestra. Eschenbach’s musical stamp is constantly shifting. In the third movement of the Beethoven, he opened with a refreshing, rousing account of the presto; switched to a second section that sounded downright lugubrious; brought back the original theme in a much lighter, more delicate vein; and then belabored the contrast between the two until one was almost sick of it. There’s no question he has a lot to say, and no question that he’s utterly in the moment. And there’s no question that the musicians sound as though they’re going right along with him. That, at the very least, is something to work with. The program repeats Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.

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Ireland voters strongly approve European fiscal treaty

investors and cut off any chance of future E.U. bailouts. “We need stability, we need our spending to be under control for once, and the E.U. will be watching how the money is spent,” she said. “Ireland has hugely benefited by being a part of the E.U.; we wouldn’t have motorways or other things if it weren’t for them. The point now is, enough with the waste, and I think the treaty will be a good thing.” Under Irish law, the ceding of fresh powers to the European Union requires a referendum, making Ireland the only nation in the 17-country euro zone to hold a vote on the treaty. Most of the other signer nations require only parliamentary approval for ratification. There were fears across Europe that the Irish would reject the treaty in the referendum, something voters here have done twice on previous regional pacts. But an Irish rejection would not have killed the pact, which only needs 12 of the 17 nations that share the euro in order to come into effect. But it would have dealt it a symbolic blow, potentially complicating its ratification in other nations. Thus far, only four nations — Greece, Portugal, Slovenia and Cyprus — have fully ratified it. A yes vote in Dublin, observers say, could offer the treaty a boost of momentum at a time when even German Chancellor Angela Merkel is having a tough time securing its passage through the German Parliament. France’s new president, Francois Hollande, is also calling for its renegotiation to add new pledges aimed at boosting growth. Although many Dubliners professed little interest in — or comprehension of — the complicated treaty, others were bitterly divided over it. Many saw it as a proxy vote on the current government, which is facing deep resentment for a host of higher taxes and benefit cuts made at the behest of E.U. officials. At a polling station near Glasnevin Cemetery, the resting place of fallen heroes from the 1916 uprising against British rule, voter Barry Oglesby said he felt uncomfortable with the notion of surrendering too much power to Brussels, the E.U. administrative capital. “I know we have to claw our way back and make sacrifices, but we should be determining our own fate,” said Oglesby, a 34-year-old personal trainer. “We shouldn’t limit ourselves to what they say we are allowed to do.” A good segment of the Irish

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Butterfly gardens are a fun family project

A Monarch Butterfly lands on a plant. It’s easy to create a garden that will draw the beautiful creatures to your back yard. (Mike Staugaitis/AP) For a warm-weather project that can get your family working and learning together — and also help some beautiful insects — try a backyard butterfly garden. With a little planning, you can create a welcoming habitat for butterflies through the warm-weather months, says Rick Mikula, author of “The Family Butterfly Book.” The biggest problem facing butterflies is that where they like to live is being destroyed, Mikula says. Even if your garden offers just a few butterfly-friendly blooms in pots, it can help the insects’ population — and improve the look of your living space. “Any offering for butterflies in a garden, no matter how small, is like chicken soup for a cold,” he says. “It can’t hurt.” Simple flowers such as varieties of echinacea, daisies, asters and even some violets can serve as butterfly-friendly snacking spots. “Even one or two plants like that are going to be great because when the butterflies are moving, there’s a place for them to stop,” says Mikula, who lives in Pennsylvania. But if you really want to have butterflies in your garden, there are some things you’ll have to get used to — like caterpillars. Caterpillars, which are butterflies’ offspring, like to eat plants. They may eat the herbs and vegetables that you’ve planted with the hope that they would one day be your dinner. Plant extra to feed the caterpillars, and remember you’ll be rewarded when caterpillars turn into butterflies. Also, stop using pesticides on vegetable gardens or lawns. There are other things that a butterfly garden should include, including rocks for butterflies to sun themselves on. Before you laugh, it’s true. Butterflies like to sunbathe, so putting a flat rock near flowers will give them a place to rest after a meal. While butterflies can get most of the moisture they need from feeding, many like to gather around puddles and wet places. You can offer a “puddling station” by creating a damp area of ground covered with sand. Beyond the “sheer joy” you get when finding a butterfly in your garden, Mikula says, butterfly gardening also can teach families about the life cycle of insects, and about caring for plants and their environment. The best part, he says, is that you will be doing the

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Federal courts evolve on same-sex marriage

LIKE PRESIDENT OBAMA, federal courts have been evolving on same-sex marriage. In 1972, the Supreme Court summarily dismissed a challenge to a Minnesota law defining marriage as the union between a man and a woman, rejecting the notion that the Constitution’s equal protection clause guaranteed the right of same-sex couples to marry. Citing that standing precedent, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit found that it could not proclaim such a right in 2012. Instead, the court issued Thursday a more limited but nevertheless important ruling in the long fight for same-sex marriage equality. The Boston court overturned the most noxious part of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) — which denies federal benefits to same-sex couples, regardless of whether gay marriage is allowed in their home states. The ruling redresses the grievous injustice of prohibiting benefits to the 100,000 same-sex couples now legally married. What’s more, it gives voters in Maryland more confidence that, should they approve of gay marriage in November, federal courts will guarantee same-sex couples’ access to everything from the ability to file taxes jointly to Social Security survivor benefits. In writing for the court, Judge Michael Boudin said that Congress did not have sufficient ration­ale for DOMA. The act faces a slightly higher bar for constitutionality than other laws since it targets a minority group and puts pressure on states in a policy area typically reserved for them. Against that standard, the justifications for DOMA fail. Denying marriage benefits to gay men and lesbians does nothing to encourage or defend traditional, heterosexual marriage, for example. And it does nothing to promote child-rearing in “stable” heterosexual households, since gay men can still adopt in most states and lesbians can still bear children. Still, Judge Boudin went out of his way not to condemn all of the law’s supporters, including President Bill Clinton, who signed DOMA in 1996 and has since called for its repeal. “Traditions are the glue that holds society together,” the judge wrote. “The desire to retain them is strong and can be honestly held.” He also suggested that the ruling could not be used as the basis for overturning state bans on same-sex marriage. To gay activists weary after decades of effort to attain basic rights, the First Circuit’s decision will no doubt feel too cautious. We share their frustration that so many states continue to deny so many Americans a

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“An Eonomist Gets Lunch: New Rules for Everyday Foodies” by Tyler Cowen

Economist Tyler Cowen calls himself an “everyday foodie,” and his new book, “An Economist Gets Lunch,” is aimed at people like him. So it seems reasonable to ask: What is an everyday foodie? A single mom on food stamps who shops at the farmers market? A locavore who cooks nourishing meals for less than $5? It’s impossible to say, because throughout this distractingly discursive book, Cowen never defines the term. At first, he hints that he’s addressing eaters of a lower income bracket. “I also view wise eating as a way to limit inequality,” he writes, noting that in the United States the wealthy often eat better than the middle class. “It doesn’t have to be this way and I’m explaining how, even on a modest income, you can eat and enjoy some of the tastiest food in the world.” As if to emphasize his solidarity with those on “modest incomes,” he shows how he disdains fancy restaurants and celebrates agribusiness and the cheap food that it produces. But it soon becomes clear that Cowen thinks a modest income should be able to finance trips to Dar es Salaam and Switzerland, meals at Michelin-starred restaurants in Europe, and a taste for the finest foie gras. This is the everyday of the 1 percent. Cowen, an economics professor at George Mason University, frames his book as a manifesto — “I hope these pages will show that becoming a better consumer of food can literally revolutionize the world,” he states at the outset. But “An Economist Gets Lunch” doesn’t deliver. Written in an informal, almost flippant tone, it reads like a culinary guide for amateurs crossed with a contrarian, anti-environmentalist, pro-genetic-modified-organism rant. Sandwiched inexplicably between is a long digression on the history and culture of barbecue. Cowen’s advice for would-be food revolutionaries is as stale as a loaf of weeks-old Wonder bread. Any traveler worth her salt knows that the best food is where the locals eat, but while he was traveling in Nicaragua, this came to Cowen as a revelation. He cautions readers not to eat from a Chinese buffet and then says, “Chinese food that has been sitting is often Chinese food that has become soggy.”And does it really take an economist to figure out why restaurants with “wonderful views or innovative decor” have a high drink mark-up? ‘An Economist Gets Lunch: New Rules for Everyday Foodies’ by Tyler Cowen