Pace of Attacks in Libya Conflict Is Dividing NATO

Abstract: WASHINGTON — With the United States limiting itself to a supporting role in the conflict in Libya , fissures opened among NATO allies on Tuesday over the scope and intensity of attacks against the forces of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, officials here and in Europe said. On the eve of two important meetings this week, France and Britain openly called on the alliance and its partners to intensify airstrikes on Libyan government troops to protect civilians, prompting an unusual public retort from NATO’s command that it was carrying out the military operation under the terms of the United Nations Security Council resolution that authorized force . “As long as regime forces continue attacking their own people, we will intervene to protect them,” Lt. Gen. Charles Bouchard of Canada, the NATO operational commander, said in Naples, Italy. “NATO’s resolve is in its mandate to protect the civilian population.” Arriving for talks in Luxembourg with other European leaders, the British foreign minister, William Hague, said that the allies had to “maintain and intensify” the military effort, noting that Britain had already deployed extra ground attack planes. “Of course, it would be welcome if other countries also did the same,” Mr. Hague said. His remarks, echoed by Foreign Minister Alain Juppé of France, reflected what officials have described as a complex and at times convoluted coalition, with many participating countries refusing to carry out airstrikes against forces on the ground, even as their planes patrol the skies over Libya. Britain and France, for example, are now flying the bulk of the attack missions, with Norway, Denmark and Canada also striking Libyan targets on the ground. But other countries, including the Netherlands, Sweden, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, are taking less aggressive roles, enforcing the no-fly zone over Libya or conducting reconnaissance missions, in a nod to political considerations back home. The varying tactics reflect the different ways in which each country in the coalition views the mission, and how tough it has been to corral all the participants into focused attacks. In Washington, Obama administration officials sought to tamp down a growing sense of concern among some military analysts that the combination of the Americans’ back-seat role, NATO’s inexperience in waging a complicated air campaign against moving targets and botched communications with the ragtag rebel army had thrown the mission into disarray. In the past week, NATO pilots were involved in two friendly-fire instances that killed well over a dozen rebel fighters. Meantime, as some allies privately hope for the return of the American-led ground-attack missions, other coalition partners have expressed concern that their supplies of precision-guided bombs are running low after more than 800 strike missions. “We have every confidence in NATO’s ability to carry out the tasks of enforcing the arms embargo as well as the no-fly zone and the protection of civilians in Libya,” Mark Toner, a State Department spokesman, said Tuesday. “As the president said, the U.S. and other key partners had capabilities that they brought to this operation upfront, and then our role would diminish as NATO stepped up and took command and control of the operation. And that’s what’s happened.” The United States has worked hard to limit its role in the Libyan campaign, arguing that it has its plate full with wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It has also argued that Libya’s history and proximity to Europe make it a European problem, and that it was the French, in particular, who had argued for aggressive intervention. Still, officials in Washington and Europe expressed frustration and worry about the coordination of the campaign, though a senior official of the Obama administration said it was willing to accept the complications inherent in the command of the operation because “there’s a huge benefit in having a wider coalition.” The countries involved in the conflict are to hold separate meetings this week to try to maintain a consensus on forcing Colonel Qaddafi to end attacks on cities held by rebel forces. In Doha, Qatar, on Wednesday, representatives of one group of allied countries will discuss the diplomatic initiatives now under way, led by the United Nations special envoy for Libya, Abdel Ilah al-Khatib, and African leaders. Libya’s former foreign minister, Moussa Koussa, who fled to Britain, is also expected to attend. NATO members begin a meeting the next day in Berlin. The American delegation to the meetings in Doha will be led by Under Secretary of State William J. Burns. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who met with the Jordanian foreign minister and the emir of Qatar in Washington on Tuesday, will attend the NATO meeting in Berlin. The separate meetings are themselves a sign of the bifurcated political and military leadership of the coalition, whose members remain divided over the means of the operation, if not the end: a political transition in Libya that sees the removal of Colonel Qaddafi. “Forming coalitions is complicated enough,” the senior administration official said. “Sustaining them is sometimes equally complicated. It requires a lot of hard work and tending.” A European diplomat expressed concern that the efforts to negotiate a cease-fire — rebuffed so far by the rebels and government loyalists — could have a potential “demobilization effect” among some of the militaries now involved, because it might entice some countries to slow down the assault. Referring to Colonel Qaddafi, the diplomat insisted that “we have to maintain the military pressure on him” in order to end the conflict. Several European and NATO diplomats acknowledged on Tuesday that NATO’s initial handling of the air campaign has been plagued with problems and miscommunications. But these officials insisted that with improving weather and lessons learned from a week’s worth of hard knocks, the tempo of operations was steadily improving. A senior NATO diplomat said, for instance, that the alliance decided only at the end of March how many aircraft it would need to maintain the operation that the United States led for about 10 days. After some reluctance, countries were providing the forces to fill the requirements. NATO is now flying just under 200 aircraft, with the United States supplying about 40 refueling, reconnaissance and other specialized planes that few if any other countries have. The United States also has about 40 aircraft in reserve, including tank-killing A-10s and AC-130 gunships. The diplomats said that after a rough start, NATO was getting better at attacking mobile targets by identifying them accurately and quickly and relaying that information to the warplanes. “There is a learning curve, but we are progressing,” a French diplomat said. “The Americans are not indispensable.” In Brussels, Brig. Gen. Mark van Uhm, NATO chief of operations, said Tuesday that allied warplanes flew an average of 62 bombing runs a day last weekend, about on par with what the American-led operation did. “We are having an effect,” General van Uhm said. “Qaddafi forces can’t fight how they want to, where they want to or with what weapons they want to.”

Middle East and North Africa Unrest (2010- )


American Airlines Faults Its Pilots for Disruptions

Abstract: Airlines typically try to keep flying through bankruptcy. But simmering labor tensions at American Airlines have boiled over from the negotiating room to the airports in recent weeks, disrupting operations and leaving a trail of delayed and canceled flights that the airline says is the fault of its pilots. American said it had been forced to cancel hundreds of flights, reducing its flight schedule because of a shortage of pilots, who are calling in sick in greater numbers. Making matters worse, last-minute inspections ordered by pilots have more than quadrupled the number of cancellations related to maintenance issues this month. As a result, nearly half of American’s flights are now arriving late at their destinations. The cause of this strife has been the inability of the airline and of its pilots to agree to a new contract. American, which has lagged its bigger rivals United Airlines and Delta Air Lines in recent years, filed for bankruptcy protection last November mainly to reduce its labor costs. The relationship between the airline and its employees has steadily soured. All three of American’s labor unions supported a merger with US Airways in April, a rare show of defiance against the company’s managers. Since then, the airline threatened workers with drastic cuts in pay and benefits unless they agreed to a new contract. It obtained substantial concessions from flight attendants, mechanics and ground workers. But pilots, in a surprise move, rejected a deal last month. After the pilots’ vote, a federal judge allowed American to scrap its existing contract with them and unilaterally impose its terms. That move has apparently provoked the latest round of problems. “The rank and file wanted to send the managers a message by rejecting the labor agreement,” said Ray Neidl, a senior aerospace and airlines analyst at the Maxim Group. “But you don’t want to trash the product just to get management’s attention.” Pilots want to demonstrate to the company’s creditors that the airline would be better off if it merged with US Airways, said Hunter Keay, a director and senior airline analyst at Wolfe Trahan & Company. The airline signed a confidentiality agreement with US Airways in August allowing the companies to exchange information and explore a possible combination. On Monday, the pilots’ union suggested that negotiations could resume soon. Mr. Keay said American’s rivals were unlikely to benefit from its woes. “Business travelers tend to be very loyal,” he said. “It will take more than a couple of late flights to move the needle.” Still, some passengers are feeling the effects. On-time arrivals, which are defined as flights landing within 15 minutes of schedule, have dropped to under 60 percent this month at American. That is well below its regular performance of above 80 percent. American was also forced to pre-emptively cancel about 300 flights last week and reduced its capacity by as much as 2 percent through October, according to a spokesman. Since March, pilots have been calling in sick in greater numbers. Sick leave is up by 20 to 30 percent each month compared with last year, said Bruce Hicks, a company spokesman. This month, 7.13 percent of pilots were on sick leave, he said, compared with 5.9 percent in September 2011. This has drained the pool of reserve pilots who are called upon during irregular operations, forcing American to cancel flights in its September and October schedule. A spike in maintenance work requested by pilots has forced more flight cancellations and delays. Those requests, called pilot write-ups, are sometimes posted after the main cabin door has been closed or the airplane has reached the taxiway, the company said. Since the beginning of the month, the cancellation rate has averaged 2 percent, more than twice the usual rate. On Sept. 17, the airline said, it canceled 6 percent of its flights because of pilot write-ups. Maintenance requests by pilots are 34 percent higher this month than the same month last year. Another procedure called a precautionary check, which is also ordered by pilots but requires no repair, is up by 97 percent, the airline said. “Every airline has maintenance issues, every day,” said Mr. Hicks, the spokesman for American. “We have a system that provides for safe operations and we expect our pilots to write up legitimate maintenance concerns. But the impact on operations has been terrible. Customers see it that way, and rightly so.” In some cases, the complaints involve serious issues. In others, they are more mundane: pilots have been reporting burned-out passenger lights, frayed seat-back pockets or broken coffee makers, the airline said. As a result, the number of flights canceled because of maintenance issues has shot up to an average of 31 a day this month. That is more than four times the regular maintenance-related cancellation rate of seven, the airline said. The pilots’ union has denied that it was organizing any job action and said the airline’s poor performance was management’s fault. It also defended the action of pilots who “cannot ignore serious maintenance issues that could easily turn into safety risks,” according to a statement released Friday.

American Airlines
Pilots
Organized Labor
Airlines and Airplanes


Estonian Links Moscow to Internet Attack

Abstract: TALLINN, Estonia , May 17 — Estonia’s defense minister said Thursday that the cyberattacks that had crippled this high-tech country’s Web sites were a threat to national security, and that it was possible the Russian government was behind them. Defense Minister Jaak Aaviksoo said about a million computers around the world were used over more than two weeks to attack government and corporate Web sites in Estonia, which is engaged in a bitter dispute with Moscow over the removal of a Soviet-era war memorial from downtown Tallinn. “We identified in the initial attacks’ IP numbers from the Russian governmental offices,” Mr. Aaviksoo told The Associated Press by telephone, referring to traceable Internet addresses. “There is not sufficient evidence of a governmental role, but it indicates a possibility.” The Russian government has denied that it is involved. Dmitri Peskov, a government spokesman, said the attackers must have used a fake Kremlin electronic address to tarnish the Russian authorities. The attacks, which subsided this week, have also concerned NATO, which sent a specialist to Estonia.

Estonia
Computers and the Internet
Russia


World Bank President to Step Down

Abstract: WASHINGTON — Robert B. Zoellick will step down as president of the World Bank when his five-year term expires on June 30, the Washington-based institution announced on Wednesday. In an interview, Mr. Zoellick said that he had no immediate plans for his next career move. He said that he felt most proud of his work to modernize the bank, which focuses on fighting poverty and financing development in emerging countries. When he first took office in 2007, “there were questions about whether people wanted to be engaged with the bank,” he said. “Now, we find that whether on regular development issues, postconflict states, or climate issues, there is a very strong interest in working with us.” Mr. Zoellick’s departure seems likely to set off another clash between the advanced economies that traditionally appoint the leaders of the major international financial institutions and the emerging economies that tend to benefit from — and bear the consequences of — those institutions’ policies. For the last seven decades, since the World Bank’s establishment, the United States has in practice appointed its leader, while Europe picks the head of the International Monetary Fund , the bank’s sister institution. Recently, countries like Brazil , India and China — with their rapid economic growth and growing political clout on the global stage — have pushed for a more open, transparent and inclusive selection process. Aid and international development organizations have also railed against the old guard’s outsize influence. “Whoever becomes the president needs to be seen as legitimate around the world,” said Nancy Birdsall, the president of the Center for Global Development in Washington. “The emerging markets — we need to bring them into the multilateral fold, to have them engaged not as victims or recipients or problems, but as real actors whose decisions matter.” The World Bank’s leadership has committed to opening up the presidential selection process, and the Group of 20 countries has stated its commitment to “support new open, transparent and merit-based selection processes for the heads and senior leadership” of the funds and banks that support financial stability and development in communiqués . But in practice, that has not yet resulted in a big change at the top. In 2007, European leaders supported former President George W. Bush ’s nomination of Mr. Zoellick to head the World Bank. And Washington supported the candidacy of Christine Lagarde , the former French finance minister, for managing director of the International Monetary Fund last year. But notably Mr. Zoellick and Ms. Lagarde visited major emerging market nations to drum up support for their candidacies. Thomas E. Donilon , the White House national security adviser; Jacob J. Lew , the chief of staff; and Timothy F. Geithner , the Treasury secretary, are consulting with President Obama in choosing a nominee. The White House expects to make an announcement in the next few weeks. Hillary Rodham Clinton , the secretary of state, is an often-mentioned candidate for the position, though the State Department has denied rumors that she is moving to the bank. Lawrence H. Summers , a former Treasury secretary in the Clinton administration and Obama economic adviser, is another possibility. Mr. Geithner is also mentioned, though his role in helping select the next president may suggest he is not a candidate. In a statement, Mr. Geithner praised Mr. Zoellick’s contributions to the bank, calling him a “remarkably effective leader.” “It is very important that we continue to have strong, effective leadership of this important institution, and in the coming weeks, we plan to put forward a candidate with the experience and requisite qualities to take this institution forward,” he said. Mr. Zoellick said he had made democratizing development one of his major goals at the helm of the institution. “We wanted to move away from an elite model, and instead say, ‘There’s a lot of interesting experimentation and innovation across developing countries.’ ” “The world is changing and changing quite fast, and the bank has to change with it,” he added. Mr. Zoellick presided over the first increase in the bank’s general financial resources in two decades. He also helped to raise $90 billion for the bank’s fund for the world’s poorest, the International Development Association. Mr. Zoellick has also pushed the bank to open not just its coffers, but its data archives , giving public access to its much-prized store of information on the world economy. “I’m very proud of that,” Mr. Zoellick said, describing the policy as a “freedom of information act” for the bank. It is also “important because it makes public institutions more accountable, and it helps us focus on results,” he said. There is considerable speculation over where Mr. Zoellick, who is 58, might be headed as well. A longtime member of the Republican foreign and economic policy elite, his name has been mentioned as a possible candidate to become Treasury secretary if President Obama does not win a second term. Mr. Zoellick said that he had no plans, and did not plan to decide his next career move until after he left the bank. Mr. Zoellick said that the World Bank supported an open application process to replace him as president. But, he added, “I’ve spent 30 years, both in government and outside government, trying to help and support and rebuild the multilateral system.” He said, “I think there’s a benefit for this system if the United States has a sense of responsibility to and ownership of those institutions.”

World Bank
Robert B Zoellick
Appointments and Executive Changes


On a Respite From Bedside Duty

Abstract: The names New York University Langone Medical Center and Bellevue Hospital Center do not conjure up images of fun and exploration. But many New Yorkers end up spending time there for myriad reasons, like a shoulder X-ray or to visit with an ill loved one or welcome a new baby. For these visitors, whether arriving by M15 bus, No. 6 train to 33rd Street or car driven by a flustered father-to-be, there is plenty to see and do. MICHAEL WILSON • NOON What better way to wait out those contractions of early labor than to catch a movie a block away? Ride out the waves in front of “The Hurt Locker” at the AMC Loews Kips Bay 15 theater , at 570 Second Avenue near 32nd Street, (212) 447-0638. It opens before noon and is downright roomy for a theater — a welcome relief from cramped hospital chairs. And cell service seems uninterrupted in most of the above-ground screening rooms, in case you get called back to the hospital. • 2 P.M. Take a break at St. Vartan Park , at 35th Street and First Avenue, and while you’re there count your blessings. A 1904 letter to the editor of The New York Times from a P. D. Mackintosh complained of a “regular battle with stones” between young boys from 35th Street and their rivals on 36th. Nowadays, however, such high jinks would presumably be stopped by nearby officers directing traffic into the Queens-Midtown Tunnel, as well as by the small army of nannies that frequents the park. St. Vartan’s also features thousands of shrubs that were planted during a 1984 renovation and, in the northeast corner of the park, there sits a sculpture that is the very picture of harmony — a bird perched on the back of a lion. • 3 P.M. Your convalescing friend needs a book, and N.Y.U. Langone Medical Center has a free Patient Leisure Reading Cart that boasts of “biographies, how-to books, works of fiction, and books on history, travel, sports and health.” But the cart closes at noon and the books must eventually be returned, so perhaps you’d prefer to get him that new Elmore Leonard title or Sookie Stackhouse vampire novel at the Borders bookstore next door to the movie theater, 576 Second Avenue, (212) 685-3938. A 24-hour newsstand at 35th Street, at 643 Second Avenue, carries lots of magazines, as well as cheap cigars (“It’s a boy!”). And choices for flowers for your sick relative abound in the neighborhood, from corner bodegas to Flower Mid 36, a florist at 647 Second Avenue, (212) 213-5530. • 5 P.M. Time for a quick bite. The charms of the hospital cafeterias will quickly wear thin. Why are their menus, with precooked burgers under heat lamps and a cheery array of thick pie slices, so oddly unhealthy? Oh, well, you’re just visiting, so if you’re at N.Y.U., maybe go for the cheeseburger in a warming sleeve, for $2.55, or a red velvet cupcake, $2. Or go in a healthier direction with falafel ($9.95) or vegetable casserole ($11.95) at Sahara’s Turkish Cuisine, 513 Second Avenue, (212) 532-7589. Or make your own meal at Todaro Brothers , a specialty food store at 555 Second Avenue, (212) 532-0633. • 6:30 P.M. If you must remain at the hospital, there are surprises right on the grounds. Bellevue has a pleasant vest-pocket garden in the rear, near Franklin D. Roosevelt Drive. The garden includes an arbor, benches fashioned from big logs, a gazebo and a small storage structure that looks like a tiny cottage. The hospital also has a horse-drawn ambulance from 1898 on display, minus the horse, and a piano in one of the lobbies. And don’t miss the former spooky, Gothic “Psychiatric Hospital” entrance facing East 30th Street.


Lynch Begins His Holdout as Seahawks’ Camp Starts

Abstract: Marshawn Lynch was absent, as expected, on Friday when the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks began training camp. Coach Pete Carroll said he was disappointed Lynch was not present. Carroll said the team wanted Lynch there and still intended for him to be an integral part of its plans for this season. But the message was clear that Seattle put a plan in place before Lynch was signed to a four-year contract in 2012, and the Seahawks’ management is not inclined to stray from those plans. Carroll said he had stayed in touch with Lynch in the off-season. Lynch attended the mandatory minicamp in June to avoid a hefty fine but now faces fines of $30,000 for each day of camp he misses. Lynch made known his intentions of holding out from camp this week when his former teammate Michael Robinson said on NFL Network that Lynch was unhappy with the structure of his contract. Lynch can make up to $5.5 million this season in base pay and roster bonuses. It is the third year of a four-year contract. TEXAN AT CAMP The star receiver Andre Johnson’s issues with the Houston Texans were not serious enough to keep him off the field. Johnson, who reported to camp on time Friday, said he is looking to move past an off-season in which he skipped workouts and a mandatory minicamp after wondering in May whether Houston was “still the place for me.” He would not divulge what exactly was said or done to get him to return to the team, but he said it was his plan to finish his career with the Texans. Johnson, 33, whose 1,407 yards receiving in 2013 ranked second in the A.F.C., rejoins a team that is looking to bounce back from a disastrous 2-14 season. The status of outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney was still unclear; he is recovering from surgery to repair a sports hernia. COWBOY CONVICTED IN ALABAMA Dallas Cowboys linebacker Rolando McClain has been convicted of resisting arrest and disorderly conduct in his hometown in Alabama. A city court judge in Decatur convicted McClain on the misdemeanor counts in a nonjury trial Friday. McClain appealed immediately to state court. McClain, 25, was accused of yelling an obscenity at police officers trying to arrest him during a disturbance in a crowded city park in 2013. The Cowboys acquired the rights to McClain from Baltimore on July 1. He was the eighth overall pick by Oakland in 2010 but has not played since 2012. COLT INJURED AS IRSAY RETURNS Colts running back Vick Ballard was carted off the field with a lower left leg injury. The owner Jim Irsay, making his first appearance at training camp, said Ballard would have a magnetic resonance imaging test. Ballard appeared to hurt his ankle on a pass play. Ballard ran for 814 yards and 2 touchdowns as a rookie in 2012 and had 13 carries for 63 yards in last year’s season opener. But before the second game, Ballard tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. Irsay is awaiting a decision from N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell about a possible punishment after his March arrest on charges of driving while intoxicated and driving with a controlled substance in his body. Irsay did not discuss the case or Goodell’s possible decision. BROWN AWAITS APPEAL The Pro Bowl wide receiver Josh Gordon reported to the Browns’ training camp as he awaits an appeal hearing with the N.F.L. on a possible suspension. Gordon, scheduled to meet with the league Aug. 1, faces an indefinite suspension for violating the substance abuse policy for at least the third time. He was suspended for the first two games last season. Gordon participated with Cleveland’s other veterans in a conditioning test Friday. Defensive tackle Phil Taylor did not complete the sprints, and tight end Gary Barnidge was helped off the field by trainers. SAINT RETURNS New Orleans tight end Jimmy Graham attended practice after a protracted contract holdout kept him out of all of the Saints’ off-season work. Graham said the hardest part of the holdout that produced his four-year, $40 million deal last week was being away from teammates and coaches. Graham said staying in shape was the easy part; he recorded the lowest time on the team in conditioning tests. In four pro seasons, Graham 301 receptions for 3,863 yards and 41 touchdowns. SUIT AGAINST LINEMEN Mike and Maurkice Pouncey, both offensive linemen, have been sued by three people who say the twins attacked them at a Miami Beach nightclub. The lawsuit was filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court on behalf of Ricquan James, Niya Pickett and Brentley Williams, who seek more than $15,000 in damages. According to the suit, the Pounceys harassed James and attacked him July 12; Pickett was beaten when she tried to intervene; and Williams was injured when the Pounceys threw James and Pickett out of the club. A lawyer for the Pounceys said the brothers were not involved in an altercation. No charges have been filed. Maurkice Pouncey plays center for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Mike Pouncey is a center for the Miami Dolphins.

Seahawks
Marshawn Lynch
Super Bowl
Pete Carroll
NFL
Football
Super Bowl 2015


Simon Property Alters Bid for General Growth

Abstract: The Simon Property Group made a new offer on Wednesday to General Growth Partners, the bankrupt mall operator, offering to invest $2.5 billion along the lines of the reorganization plan it has already announced. The new Simon plan , which would include a potential $1 billion co-investment by the hedge fund Paulson & Company, no longer seeks outright control of General Growth. Simon said that it would limit its voting interest to about 20 percent. Instead, it is seeking to effectively replace Brookfield Asset Management, the current sponsor of General Growth’s plan. But Simon remains interested in acquiring all of General Growth and may still seek to take control of the entire company in the near future, according to people briefed on the matter. General Growth said in a statement that its board will study Simon’s proposal. The move comes after General Growth rebuffed a previous $10 billion takeover offer by Simon in favor of the Brookfield plan, which would leave the company independent upon exiting Chapter 11 protection. Under its plan, General Growth would split itself into two entities: a bigger holding company for most of its malls and a smaller one that would hold properties it deems undervalued. Chief among Simon’s objectives is eliminating 120 million warrants to buy General Growth stock for $15 each, set to be issued to Brookfield and two other plan sponsors, Fairholme Capital Management and Pershing Square Capital Management. In a letter to General Growth’s chief executive, Adam Metz, Simon’s chief executive, David Simon, wrote that eliminating the warrants could be worth at least $895 million. Simon has argued that the warrants represent a costly defense against potential alternative bids to Brookfield’s plan and could dilute General Growth’s existing stakeholders. They would be issued if the federal judge overseeing General Growth’s bankruptcy case grants the Brookfield plan “stalking horse” status, meaning it is the proposal against which others must compete, at an April 29 hearing. Fairholme and Pershing could remain co-investors in the Simon plan so long as they agree to forgo the warrants promised under the Brookfield plan. Otherwise, Simon said, it, Paulson and others will cover the financing needed to pull General Growth out of Chapter 11.

Simon Property Group Inc
Shopping Centers and Malls


Boston Fans Savor a Decade of Sports Success

Abstract: BOSTON — To Brittany Shepard, life without a Boston sports championship every year or two is like the days before text messages and Twitter: a bygone era she simply cannot fathom. “No, I don’t remember,” Shepard, 19, said about that time before championship trophies were taken on tours of New England’s old mill cities and bucolic towns, and championship banners hung from rafters. “Boston sports have had an amazing dominance and it’s always been that way to me. It’s kind of like a way of life.” That way of life is a relatively new concept here. For decades, New England fans sported a collective identity as losers — the timeworn phrase had been “long-suffering losers” — while the Red Sox, the Bruins and the Patriots delivered many calamities, but zero championships. But this city has ridden an unprecedented wave of success over the past decade: the Bruins’ victory in the Stanley Cup finals on Wednesday night made Boston the first city to win championships in all four major sports within a 10-year span. With the Patriots’ Super Bowl victories in 2002, 2004 and 2005; the Red Sox’ World Series titles in 2004 and 2007; the Celtics ’ N.B.A. title in 2008; and now the Bruins’ triumph, Boston has gone from Loserville to Titletown, just like that. “This is sort of a golden age, isn’t it, of sports here,” said Richard Johnson, curator of the Sports Museum of New England. Perhaps the golden age is sweeter for those who predate it — those New Englanders who might not consider a major sports title a birthright on the order of Yankees fans and Duke basketball fans. “For older generations, it has a greater importance,” Shepard said. “It’s amazing to see, but we just don’t have that history behind it. I always had to listen to what my mom said, which is to take it all in, because you don’t know how long it’s going to be until you win the next one.” Rooting for Boston teams was ingrained in Shepard while growing up in Cheshire, Mass., a town of about 3,500 in the Berkshires. Her mother is a fervent Red Sox fan, and Shepard became one as well, a passion matched only by her love for the Bruins. She also follows the Celtics and the Patriots, but to a lesser extent. On Wednesday night, she said, everything came together for her Boston sports fandom. “I was in my apartment hysterically crying for 25 minutes before running into the streets of Boston, screaming,” said Shepard, who will be a sophomore at Boston University. She said she spent Wednesday afternoon in a Bruins jersey, trying to recruit incoming freshmen to join the university band (she plays clarinet). Later she and her friends were running through Kenmore Square, where revelers gathered, and continued for about two miles to Boston Common, where she took a victory lap. “It’s unbelievable that it’s been so long,” Shepard said of the Bruins’ last Stanley Cup victory, 39 years ago. Since the Patriots opened the floodgates in 2002, championships have been like the New England weather: if you want something different, just wait a little while. And while Shepard revels in it, there’s one thing she doesn’t like: fans who jump on the bandwagon, only to fall off when the trophy has to depart for another city. Johnson, the museum curator, said the resurgence of Boston sports teams coincides with the advent of social media, creating a group of young fans who not only watch their favorite athletes play sports, but read their thoughts on the Internet and even pretend to be them in video games. “The relationship between the fans and the teams has grown closer even as it has grown farther” in the age of multimillion-dollar contracts, Johnson said. That is especially true in Boston, where athletes like Shaquille O’Neal inspired legions of Twitter followers to meet him in public, and thousands pack the stands at smaller sporting events like New England Revolution soccer games or Boston Cannons lacrosse. “Boston is the Hollywood of sports,” he said. “Sports matter here. Lots of teams, not just the big four, have an audience and a constituency. “This has always been the greatest sports city in the country, in my estimation. This just underscores it.”

Stanley Cup
Boston (Mass)
Athletics and Sports
Hockey Ice
Boston Bruins
Boston Celtics
New England Patriots
Boston Red Sox


Mexico’s First Lady Quietly Takes Strong Stance

Abstract: MEXICO CITY — When Margarita Zavala, the wife of Mexico ’s president, is reminded that newspapers here all ran front-page photographs of her attending a recent memorial service for two university students killed in drug violence, she frowns just slightly. In the past few months, this discreet first lady has taken on a public role consoling the families of victims as Mexico’s drug war claims a growing number of innocent lives. But she had not planned for her expressions of solidarity, as she called them — the phone calls, the unpublicized visits — to become so visible. “I don’t like to do it in a very public way because it is something very personal,” she said Wednesday in an interview in her study. “I think it’s really important, for somebody, for a mother to feel that she is not alone.” Ms. Zavala got even more exposure last week when she hosted Michelle Obama, who made a lightning trip here on her first solo foreign visit. Speaking to high school and university students, Mrs. Obama departed only once from her prepared text — to praise Ms. Zavala. “She is smart, she is tough, she is passionate,” Mrs. Obama said of her host. Later, Mrs. Obama told reporters that Ms. Zavala had given her a very informative presentation during an early-morning discussion that the two had held about preventing drug addiction. Before she became Mexico’s first lady more than three years ago, Ms. Zavala, 42, had a career as a lawyer and then as a member of Mexico’s Congress. The daughter of lawyers, educated at a Catholic school and then one of the country’s most prestigious law schools, she was a rising figure in the conservative National Action Party, where she met her husband, Felipe Calderón. But when he became president more than three years ago, she slipped quietly into her new role, one that she said she had to make up as she went along. In part, it was because she had three young children — the youngest is only 7 now — and wanted to make life as normal as possible for them. She still teaches a law course for the high school seniors at the children’s school, the same one she attended. She said she had to explain what it meant for “their daddy to be on loan to the country for six years.” But she was also aware that her predecessor, who had presidential aspirations, had been a polarizing figure . Political tensions were high after Mr. Calderón won a close election in 2006 that split the country, and Ms. Zavala did not want to cause any controversy, said Sara Sefchovich, a professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico who has written about Mexico’s first ladies. While she has worked to raise the profile of women in her party and is an advocate for women’s rights in the workplace, one traditionally feminist argument has never swayed her: she opposes abortion. Her only political declaration since Mr. Calderón has taken office has been to condemn the legalization of abortion in Mexico City. Other than that stance, Ms. Zavala has pursued her signature themes, supporting organizations that fight drug addiction and others that care for migrant children who are returned alone from the United States. Even critics of Mr. Calderón’s policies praise Ms. Zavala’s warmth and open-mindedness. As a legislator, “she was sensitive, she was reflective, she liked to listen to the arguments of other women,” said Guadalupe Loaeza, a social commentator who has met Ms. Zavala. A poll released Monday in the Excelsior newspaper found that Ms. Zavala was the most popular politician in her party, ahead of her husband, his cabinet and congressional leaders. Whether Ms. Zavala has had a role in persuading Mr. Calderón to pay more attention to the social causes of Mexico’s violence is unclear, but she has been at his side as he has begun to change some of the combative statements that characterized the first years of the battle he waged against drug cartels. When the mother of two high school students who were killed at a party in the border city of Ciudad Juárez confronted Mr. Calderón in February, Ms. Zavala was there, too, listening intently as the distraught woman spoke. She has visited the neighborhood where the killings took place, residents said, and she has followed up with calls to make sure that the victims and their families are receiving psychological and medical help. “This terrible moment in the drug war fell on her, and consoling people comes genuinely from deep inside her,” Ms. Sefchovich said. When asked whether she might have political ambitions beyond her husband’s presidency after it ends in 2012, she is quick to draw back from any suggestion of it other than to say that she promises to continue working to prevent drug addiction. “I have always thought about politics in its broadest sense, in the sense of promoting well-being,” she said. “That doesn’t depend on the position one is in.”

Mexico
Politics and Government
Zavala Margarita
Drug Abuse and Traffic
Polls and Public Opinion
Women and Girls
Immigration and Emigration


Crisis Forges Closer Europe-U.S. Alliance

Abstract: BRUSSELS — There was a moment in the late 1990s, when President Bill Clinton found himself at a meeting with European leaders facing two men from Luxembourg — population 420,000, give or take a few. One happened to be just taking a turn at the European Union presidency, which at the time rotated among all member states, no matter how small. “We now have two Luxembourgers here instead of one,” Mr. Clinton noted dryly, “which gives them, I think, the highest percentage of world leadership compared to the population of any country in the world by a good, long way.” Mr. Clinton’s encounter with Jacques Santer, the president of the bloc’s executive, the European Commission, and Jean-Claude Juncker, who is still the country’s prime minister, captured some of the absurdities of the American relationship with the then-nascent project to integrate Europe. Today, when that ambition seems jeopardized weekly by mounting public debts, political finger-pointing and a bond market squeeze — known collectively as the euro crisis — it is easy to forget the distance traveled by Europeans together and the ways in which the E.U.’s once tentative relations with Washington have evolved as well. Much has changed since Mr. Clinton’s wry observation. In the late 1990s the E.U. was a collection of 15 nations, and just about as many currencies. The star-shaped Berlaymont building, the headquarters of the European Commission, was shrouded in plastic sheeting. Renovations had forced officials to take refuge in one of the many nondescript buildings of a city synonymous with deadening bureaucracy. The highest profile American presence was its mission to NATO, several kilometers outside of town. Today, the E.U. has 27 members, including many former Communist countries, creating the world’s largest bloc of trading nations with a population of some half a billion. Its single currency is used by 17 nations. Despite — or because of — the dire problems caused by the debt crisis , member states are vesting more power than ever at the E.U. level. The E.U. no longer rotates its presidency among national governments, for big policy decisions at least. The European Council, where the national governments meet, now has a permanent president, Herman Van Rompuy , a former Prime Minister of Belgium, and a more powerful foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton. Though not without critics, the change has meant that foreign leaders meet the same E.U. interlocutors — at least for stretches of two-and-a-half years — allowing them and their officials to forge closer ties. Not least, the United States, once wary of the diffuse nature of power in the E.U. and its cumbersome bureaucracy — a caution evidenced by the quip ascribed to Henry Kissinger, “Who do I call if I want to call Europe?” — is embracing the logic of Brussels as never before. The United States mission to the E.U. here has grown every year recently. Today it has 108 diplomats, one-fifth larger than six years ago. Eleven United States government departments are represented, covering areas like law enforcement, plant and animal inspection, oceans and atmosphere, immigration and customs. “We are bursting at the seams here,” said William Kennard, the American ambassador to the E.U. “A number of agencies that have sent people here for the first time tell me that it is a very efficient use of resources. It’s a regional hub for Europe.” This expansion can be witnessed in the E.U. district of Brussels, a nearly perpetual construction zone. The Berlaymont re-opened in 2004 after a state-of-the-art refit that cost €670 million, or about $890 million. A new headquarters is now being built for the president of the European Council, created by the E.U.’s Lisbon Treaty, which came into force in December 2009. With its womb-like appearance in architectural plans, the €300-million building has been nicknamed the “E-uterus.” Down the road at Schuman Roundabout, another building is being filled, this time by the E.U.’s new diplomatic corps. The complex, complete with a coffee shop and supermarket, is destined to be the E.U’s equivalent of the State Department. Some, like the American ambassador, Mr. Kennard, believe that recent economic crises have even been good for trans-Atlantic ties, forcing the recognition of interdependence. “Ironically the financial crisis has brought us closer together,” said Mr. Kennard, who argues that a time of limited resources makes the logic of closer cooperation more compelling. Peter Chase, a former American diplomat who now represents the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Brussels, agreed. “The euro crisis has got people’s attention because what happens in the European economy has a major impact in the U.S.,” he said. “You cannot not deal with the E.U. — that was true four years ago but it’s even more true now.” The other factor pushing the two sides together is the rise of China. It may, he believes, even add momentum to a trans-Atlantic free trade agreement. Even if such an accord remains far off, Mr. Chase says he believes there is now a good chance the two sides will announce plans to open negotiations sooner. “Europeans are even more concerned about the rise of China than Americans,” Mr. Chase said. “There is a sense that before, it would not have been appropriate for the U.S. and the E.U. to do things together. That’s not the case now.” Yet Washington’s more positive stance toward the E.U. is tempered by the knowledge that the debt crisis has sapped Europe’s economic strength — and its commitment to defense spending — while eroding public support for the idea of European integration. Decision-making here still proceeds at a glacial pace, a fact that sometimes frustrates American officials. Mr. Kennard says that the emergence of new global powers will test the E.U. system. “The rest of the world is not going to wait for decisions to be made,” he said. In fact, relations have evolved to the point that the United States has seemed sometimes to want the E.U. to work more than Europeans do. “There is a cruel irony to the story,” said Charles Kupchan, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. “In that Washington has finally come to the realization that it is in America’s interests to have as strong a Europe as possible — and the partner that the U.S. now hopes for is not the partner it has.”

European Union
Euro (Currency)
Van Rompuy Herman
United States International Relations
Treaty of Lisbon (2007)


With a 69, Couples Stays in Mix at Chevron World Challenge

Abstract: THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — In an elite field at the Chevron World Challenge that is loaded with players from the top 50 in the world ranking, Fred Couples can claim he belongs because of his age. He is still only 49. The oldest player at Sherwood Country Club, whose world ranking has fallen to No. 175, the ageless Couples continues to hang around some players half his age. Even with a mud-ball bogey on the final hole Friday, he had a three-under 69 to finish three shots behind Jim Furyk and stay in the mix. “I can hang around anybody,” Couples said. “Playing well is a shock.” Some might consider Furyk’s play to be surprising, given his lack of competition. Taking a break from his four-month vacation, Furyk was not nearly as crisp but he did not make any mistakes until the final hole on his way to a 71. Furyk was at five-under 139, two shots clear of Anthony Kim (70), Camilo Villegas (67) and K. J. Choi (71). Couples and Steve Stricker (71) were another shot behind. Couples was No. 1 in the world until his career was slowed considerably by back problems. It got so bad last year that he played only three times. Through it all, his raw talent has kept him in the picture. In playing only 18 times this year, he made nearly $1 million and easily kept his card. “I wouldn’t consider myself to be a threat too much anymore,” Couples said. “But I know I can go around this course because of old habit, and I’ve played here and I like the course. So that certainly helps me.” Tiger Woods, the host of the tournament, lobbied to get official world ranking points for the Chevron World Challenge, but he had to make concessions. Starting next year, the sponsor exemptions must be in the top 50. “I’ve played so many times on a sponsor’s exemption, and Tiger came up the other day and he said, ‘I’ve got to tell you something,’ ” Couples said. “I go, ‘Oh my God, what did I do wrong?’ He said, ‘You cannot play my tournament next year unless you’re in the top 50.’ “What am I, 400th right now?” The good news for Furyk is that he finally made a birdie on a par 5 — Sherwood has five of them. It came on the 16th hole, which he reached in two and lagged nicely to tap-in range to reach six under. “It only took me 10 tries,” he said.

Couples Fred
Golf
Furyk Jim
Age Chronological


Apps to Help You Navigate the Night Sky

Abstract: Choose a clear night and hold your phone skyward, and the heavens suddenly make sense — that is, with the help of a stargazing application. If ever there were a type of mobile software guaranteed to elicit a grin, this is it. These apps — like Starmap, Star Walk, Pocket Universe, Google Sky Map and others — are part of a category known as “augmented reality.” The idea is to point a mobile device toward an object and let an app show you more about what you’re seeing than your own eyes could. At the moment, the category is in its nascent stages, with one exception — the stargazing apps. As for which app you should buy, it depends on your level of astronomical expertise, and what device you have. Pocket Universe ($3) and Star Walk ($3) offer great experiences for beginners with an iPhone . Google Sky Map (free) will do the same for Android users. Starmap ($12) and Starmap Pro ($19) will probably appeal to more experienced astronomers. IPad owners, meanwhile, can download Star Walk for iPad ($5). You don’t even need a starry night — or, for that matter, a view of the night sky. Open the app in your bedroom and point the iPad skyward, and it will show you whatever you would have seen if you were looking through a telescope in that very direction. Even better, it will label stars, planets and constellations, and offer up details about them in terms that amateurs will easily absorb. Ever wonder about the constellation that’s tied to your astrological sign? Search for Gemini, for instance, and it will display the constellation as it currently looks in the sky, even if it isn’t visible from your particular vantage point. Touch “Pollux,” Gemini’s brightest star, and then tap on the information icon. A dropdown box displays a brief description of the star — which, it turns out, is a mere 34 light years from Earth. The box also includes data that few people other than telescope owners will need, like the RA positioning and the object’s visual magnitude. Such people will find this app useful, but these users are better suited to the Starmap apps, which offer a depth of astronomical information that others lack. For serious astronomers, Starmap Pro can be a great source of help. Use it as a remote control for pointing a telescope to distant objects, or change the view to reflect how stars might look with different lenses. At www.star-map.fr/ , see a video of its other capabilities. Star Map also works in conjunction with StarmapShare.com , by showing images in the app that other users have uploaded to the Web site. The app is so dense with information and options that stargazing novices may want a guide to help navigate it. Do you want to set the navigation options to show the Azimuthal grid? Should “Target is Telrad” be turned on? Less ambitious astronomers might consider StarMap 3-D ($2 for iPhone), which, among other things, puts you at the controls of a simulated deep- space flight . For someone with no ambition to discover the next comet, this was more my speed. Pocket Universe is in the same vein. The app is designed to be intuitive, so you can turn it on, point it toward the sky and start learning. Pocket Universe also features a “Tonight’s Sky” option, showing you a list of planets you can spot with the naked eye. Like other apps, you can filter the view in other respects, to show only constellations or deep-sky objects. And as with the other top competitors, you can alter the lighting of the app so you are not compromising your night vision with bright white light. John Kennedy, the app’s creator, said an Android version would probably appear eventually. On that front, though, he faces extremely stiff competition from Google’s Sky Map. Google has built a business by offering very good software free, and Sky Map is no exception. Type “Jupiter,” or “M83” into the search box, for instance, and it will tell you which way to point the phone until you’ve found it. Sadly, there is no way to learn more about the stars or planets that you’ve selected. There is one other limitation. If you are on the move, you’ll have a hard time. I tried to zero in on the planets while on a train, and was hopelessly lost. Why anyone would want to use it on a train, though, is beyond me. Maybe the passenger seat of a convertible. Or a boat, perhaps. Drifting in the open water on a cloudless night, wondering what exactly the celestial navigators of the past would think of a world where people need a $500 gadget to find Gemini. Quick Calls Android’s marketplace is still small compared with the iTunes app store, but with 50,000 Android apps now available by some counts, the selection is growing quickly. Among the more useful titles is XiiaLive ($4, formerly DroidLive), which lets users search and organize their favorite radio stations and songs for easy playback. ...Rhapsody, the subscription music service, released an important update to its iPhone app this week, allowing subscribers to download their music and play when they are offline. Mobile subscriptions are $10 monthly. ...Musicians, meanwhile, can rely on a new app from the music technology specialist Planet Waves — the ProTune tuner ($6).

Stars and Galaxies
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Wireless Communications


The Push for Online Privacy - Advertising

Abstract: SOMETHING viewed online billions of times a month would seem to need no further promotion, but that assumption falls short when the something in question — a turquoise triangle in the upper right-hand corner of banner ads — is a critical piece of the debate about online privacy. On Friday, the Digital Advertising Alliance, a group of digital advertising trade organizations, will unveil its first ad campaign ever explaining what the icon is and how it helps users control ads they see online. The campaign, one of the largest domestic consumer privacy campaigns to date, comes as advertisers, technology companies and privacy advocates await a final report from the Federal Trade Commission on online privacy. “We’re on record as publicly committing to the Federal Trade Commission, to members of Congress and to consumers that education is a key component to a lot of the uses of data” online, said Stu Ingis, general counsel for the alliance. In addition to the commission’s final report, the White House is expected to prepare its own report on digital privacy. Last year, legislators introduced a number of bills in Congress that called for tighter regulation of mobile and digital privacy, as well as more control over children’s online privacy.  The alliance supports self-regulation of the digital advertising industry. The AdChoices icon-based system, which was introduced in October 2010, allows users who click on the turquoise triangle to opt out of having their behavior tracked online. The alliance’s Web site receives about 100,000 visits a week, with 90 percent of that traffic coming from users clicking the icon. An average of 15 to 25 percent of the users who visit the site opt out of behavioral advertising each week. MRM Salt Lake City, part of the McCann World Group, worked free of charge for the alliance to create the campaign, which features digital banner ads, videos and a campaign Web site. One of the videos introduces viewers to the phrase “interest-based advertising,” describing the concept as “Ads intended for you. Based on what you do online.” The video also notes the “promos, offers, coupons, brands and products” that are capable of finding users online. What it fails to mention, however, is that users can opt out of being the target of personalized ads. A second video tackles that challenge by introducing the AdChoices icon as a stick figure and “an up and coming little star popping up everywhere on the Internet.” That video goes on to explain that by clicking on the icon users can control and learn more about the information advertisers collect about them. Far from encouraging users to opt out, the ads emphasize how information that advertisers gather actually can improve the quality of the ads users see online. “Wouldn’t you rather see ads, offers and discounts for that brand?” the narrator asks. “We thought so.” Digital banner ads feature the headline “Will the right ads find you?” with one version showing a person dressed as a bookstore ad sitting next to a person reading a book. In 2009, the Interactive Advertising Bureau introduced a similar ad campaign called Privacy Matters that had a decidedly different tone. “Advertising is Creepy” said one ad, which used words like “personally identifiable” information and “data privacy.” The alliance’s campaign takes a new approach. “We wanted this to be positive messaging,” Mr. Ingis said. “It demystifies that there’s nothing bad going on there.” Lori Feld, the general manager of MRM, said the campaign was meant to emphasize “the positive side” of digital advertising. “When you’re online it can be a fairly random environment,” Ms. Feld said, referring to users who get ads for dating sites when they are married or mortgage ads when they don’t own a home. “In that scenario we know that everybody loses.” While the alliance is undertaking the campaign in an attempt to educate consumers, some critics say the banner ads and videos are meant more to fend off possible legislation. “I don’t think these ad campaigns help Internet users protect their privacy online,” said Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. “I think they’re made to justify certain business practices.” Mr. Ingis said he expected that the consumer education would “provide further support for the fact that the self-regulatory framework is making great progress.” And advertisers have been duly warned about the consequences of bad privacy practices. Nancy Hill, chief executive of the American Association of Advertising Agencies, urged advertisers attending the association’s annual conference last March to participate in the discussion about privacy “because without self-regulation, our creativity will be increasingly threatened.” In an interview on Wednesday, Ms. Hill said that most consumers “really do understand the quid pro quo” of giving up some behavioral data in exchange for ads that are relevant to their interests.  Digital ad companies are not alone in feeling pressure to explain their data collection practices. In December, Facebook began a campaign to educate its 800 million users on how it uses advertising to offset the costs of running the company. The message, delivered by a Facebook employee in an online video, was that the ads on the social networking site were meant to be useful and not disruptive. This week, Google jumped on the consumer education bandwagon with its Good to Know campaign. In a blog post and related print ads, the company explains to users why it stores information like the Web sites they have visited or their Internet addresses. But consumer awareness campaigns and federal reports may not be enough to stop the debate over privacy control. “The technologies are evolving so quickly, I don’t think the education campaign ends the dialogue,” Mr. Ingis said.

Privacy
Digital Advertising Alliance
Online Advertising
Computers and the Internet
Advertising and Marketing


KPMG Agrees to Settlement With S.E.C.

Abstract: The accounting firm KPMG will pay $8.2 million to settle civil charges that it violated independence rules by providing nonauditing services like bookkeeping to three companies that it audited, the Securities and Exchange Commission said. Concerns about auditor independence have risen recently among regulators as big accounting firms reassert themselves in the consulting business. KPMG settled without admitting or denying the charges. “Independence is the cornerstone of the auditing process, and the S.E.C. order reminds firms not to push the envelope,” James R. Doty, chairman of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, said in a statement. The board, which polices auditors, helped with the S.E.C. investigation.

KPMG
Accounting
Accounting
Regulation and Deregulation
Securities fraud
SEC
Accountants


Two Palestinians Killed in Clashes With Israeli Forces

Abstract: JERUSALEM — Two young Palestinian men were killed Thursday in clashes with Israeli security forces during a demonstration for Nakba Day, which commemorates the destruction of Arab villages in battles that led to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. Palestinian health officials said the youths, Mohammad Mahmoud Odeh Salameh, 16, and Nadeem Siam Nawara, 17, were fatally shot in the chest during a demonstration in Beitunia, a West Bank town outside Ramallah. A spokeswoman for the Israeli military said the matter was still under investigation but no live bullets had been fired — an assertion disputed by Palestinian officials. Libby Weiss, the military spokeswoman, said about 150 people had gathered outside Ofer Prison, an Israeli institution where more than 100 Palestinians have been on a hunger strike for weeks to protest their detention. She said the demonstrators threw stones and firebombs, burned tires and ignored orders from soldiers and border police officers, who fired rubber bullets and released tear gas. “They used nonviolent means to try and disperse the crowd,” Ms. Weiss said. Asked how the two men died, she said, “This is what we’re looking into right now.” Ahmad Badwan of the Palestinian Medical Relief Committee, whose ambulances attended to the victims, disputed Ms. Weiss’s account in an interview, saying the protest “began peacefully” and “turned into violence when the Israeli Army used live fire to disperse stone throwers.” Mr. Badwan said Mr. Nawara died at the scene and Mr. Salameh at a local hospital; a nurse there said one of four other protesters who were wounded was in the intensive-care unit. Amnesty International condemned the episode as “alarming” and called for a “prompt, independent and transparent” investigation. “Israeli forces have repeatedly resorted to extreme violence to respond to Palestinian protests against Israel’s occupation, discriminatory policies, confiscation of land and construction of unlawful settlements,” Philip Luther, Amnesty’s Middle East director, said in a statement. “The Israeli authorities must ensure that their forces act in a manner that respects and upholds human rights.” Israel Radio said Thursday night that the Palestinian government had declared Friday a day of mourning for the two young men who were killed, and that a spokesman for Palestinian security forces, Adnan Damiri, said the matter could lead the Palestinians to halt security coordination with Israel. Nakba Day is marked each year on the day after the May 14 anniversary of Israel’s establishment with protests and ceremonies in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and in Israel, where Palestinian citizens make up about a fifth of the population. While Palestinian leaders made speeches saying they would never relinquish the rights of millions of refugees and their descendants to return to the land where the destroyed villages stood, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel used the occasion to reiterate his call for new legislation that would underscore Israel’s Jewish identity. “They stand to attention in order to mark the tragedy of the establishment of the State of Israel, the state of the Jewish people,” Mr. Netanyahu said of Palestinians. “We shall pass the nationality law, which is a law that makes it utterly clear to the entire world that Israel is the state of the Jewish people.”

Palestinians
Israel
West Bank
Middle East


Recreating Etan Patz’s Walk in SoHo, 33 Years Later

Abstract: Could it happen now? Could someone sinister pluck a small child off that same street at that same hour on the same day, so that he vanished into the ether for 33 years? It was May 25, 1979, when the 6-year-old Etan Patz went missing on Prince Street in SoHo. The long cold case gained fresh traction on Thursday when the police said Pedro Hernandez confessed to strangling the child in the basement of the bodega where he worked. Etan was walking to the school bus stop, barely two blocks from his home, the first time he went by himself. It was the same Friday as it was then, the one introducing the Memorial Day weekend. It was the same time, 8 in the morning. The streets were damp from a prior rain, the way they were then. Everything else was different, a reimagined neighborhood of busier activity in a city implanted with security cameras. Etan began at his building at 113 Prince Street, just west of Greene Street. He walked west. He was last seen by a neighbor and a mailman. On Friday at 8, just on the other side of Greene Street, a helmeted construction worker on a zigzag lift was drilling into the side of a brick building that was to become an Apple store, and he hollered down to one of three men on the ground, “There are a couple of wrenches I need to get this nut off,” and the man on the ground said, “Huh?” It was too early for the shops to open, except for Olive’s, a coffee and sandwich place directly across from 113 Prince. Four aproned men inside extracted trays of croissants and muffins from big ovens. Prince is a one-way street, going west, lined with shops — women’s clothing and handbags and artwork — and guarded by dozens of security cameras. There were the thin, tube ones pointing at you from the exteriors of buildings or from lampposts and the dome ones hugging the ceilings of stores or the walls beside residential elevators. A black Honda CR-V drove past, trailed by two cabs. A man pedaled past on a bicycle, riding without hands on the handlebar. Another rider was not far behind, bent over. On the third floor of a building across the street, flower pots decorating the fire escape, a window was open, and someone glanced out. A middle-aged man carrying a plastic bag and a newspaper, his shirttail out, passed by going the other way. A green Buick went by, another bicyclist, an ID tag dangling from his neck. Across the street was a dark-haired woman, and then a ways back a young man in a sweatshirt, then another woman clasping a shopping bag. The first street to cross was Wooster. A woman in flip-flops and lavender pants was walking her terrier, and now the terrier began yapping at a dog across the street insouciantly doing its morning business. It was a Border collie-spaniel mix, and a couple was walking it, the man doing the tidying up. A Chevy van drove past. Another cab. A bicycle delivery man, a bag of breakfasts drooping from the handlebars. And then, exiting an apartment building was a young mother and a small mop-haired boy hauling a green backpack, and they began walking west, too. A plaque on the wall of the building celebrated Chester Rapkin (1918-2001), the “Father of SoHo.” Across the street strolled a slender woman with earphones on, fiddling with her iPod , changing tunes. A few steps back was a man in business attire, carrying a briefcase. And on this side a woman cradling a cup of coffee, and now she took a sip. Another bicyclist wheeled by. At West Broadway now. A young, blond woman in shorts jogged past, her hair in a ponytail, swishing side to side like a windshield wiper. And then a man in a gray T-shirt insultingly tight for his girth. He said, “Exactly.” Cars whistled past, the white truck of Advanced Pest Management. Vehicles halted for the changing light, then moved again. A Coach store was on the corner, multiple security cameras inside. An unshaven, tubby man in a soiled gray sweatshirt paused at the pair of ancient pay phones at the corner. He checked each coin return slot for possible rewards, but there was nothing, not a nickel. A wait for the light and then across West Broadway. A woman in a tan raincoat strode this way with an iced tea. Across the street was a man scratching his head. Just down the block, six workers were unloading scaffolding from a long flatbed truck, metal poles clanking on the pavement. The two-block walk took not even two minutes. And so 32 people, 5 bicyclists, 2 dogs, dozens of cars, dozens of security cameras. On the corner of Prince and West Broadway, right near the bus stop, was where, if the police confession is true, it all ended. It was a bodega in 1979. Now it is an eyeglass store. Multiple bubble security cameras loomed inside, watching, seeing what went on.


Uganda: Several Villages Are Buried by Landslide

Abstract: At least 18 people were killed in eastern Uganda on Monday when a landslide buried several villages in a coffee-growing area on the slopes of Mount Elgon, the Uganda Red Cross said. A local member of Parliament, David Wakikona, said that as many as 100 people might be buried. A Red Cross spokeswoman, Catherine Ntabadde, said, “From the latest reports we have, we can only confirm 18 dead, but assessment of the devastation around the area is continuing.” Local officials said about 80 people lived in each village.

Uganda
Landslides and Mudslides
Deaths (Fatalities)
Humanitarian Aid


Burnett and Teixeira Pace Yankees Win Over Tigers

Abstract: Yankees starter A. J. Burnett left one game last season after injuring his hands by slamming them against the swinging doors of the clubhouse in frustration. He showed up for another with an unexplained black eye that the team said was not baseball-related. In the end, he compiled a 10-15 record — his first losing season since 2003, when he played for the Florida Marlins. In an uneven career that has mixed flashes of brilliance with mystifying slumps, Burnett has sometimes seemed to have trouble listening to the advice of catchers, pitching coaches and managers. But Burnett (1-0) had an excuse Saturday after getting credit for a 10-6 victory over the Detroit Tigers at Yankee Stadium. His lingering throat and sinus infections have clogged his ears and hurt his ability to listen to much of anything. “Speak up!” he told the reporters who gathered around his locker after he went five innings and gave up three runs and five hits. “I can’t hear.” His catcher, Russell Martin — who along with Mark Teixeira hit a three-run homer Saturday — finally got through to Burnett when he told him to throw more changeups after he tired in the fifth. “Maybe he should wear earplugs,” Martin said with a smile. “He was reading my lips. He underestimates his changeup.” Both Martin and the pitching coach Larry Rothschild have been “yelling” at Burnett to trust his changeup, Burnett said. He shook off Martin’s request for one in the fifth and that led to one of Detroit’s three consecutive singles that helped whittle a 6-0 Yankees lead to 6-3. “Probably a good thing I couldn’t hear anything,” Burnett said. “I didn’t know what was going on. I couldn’t swallow.” Because the left-hander Andy Pettitte has retired, Burnett is being counted on to be the second-best pitcher in the Yankees’ rotation behind C. C. Sabathia. Martin’s home run, against reliever Brad Thomas in the fifth, increased the Yankees’ lead to 9-3. Earlier, Teixeira made the score 6-0 in the second against Brad Penny (0-1). Teixeira, notoriously a slow starter despite elegant slugging numbers for a long career, now has two three-run homers in two games, both Yankees victories. “So far, so good,” he said. “You’ve got to stay humble. Power hitters, we have to live on these great stretches.” The other Yankees home run Saturday came in the sixth, a solo shot by Alex Rodriguez , his first of the season, to make the score 10-3. But with the Tigers nicking up the Yankees’ bullpen in the later innings and the backup shortstop Eduardo Nunez allowing a run with a throwing error with two outs in the ninth, Manager Joe Girardi needed Mariano Rivera to get the final out for his second save. It came on a ground ball by Miguel Cabrera with two on in the ninth before a small turnout of 41,462 on a cool but bright afternoon. Gaps of empty seats made the attendance look even smaller than what was announced. Phil Hughes is set to face the Tigers’ Max Scherzer on Sunday in the final game of the series. Girardi said he asked Burnett before the game if he felt well enough to pitch, and Burnett said, “I’m good.” Girardi said he might have used him for more innings had he been feeling better. Referring to Burnett’s next scheduled start — Thursday against the Minnesota Twins — Girardi said, “Hopefully by Thursday we can get him a little healthier.” Girardi, a former catcher, praised Martin, a free agent from the Dodgers who has replaced Jorge Posada behind the plate. Martin, who batted eighth Saturday, has a hit in each game. “He’s swinging the bat, he’s blocking balls, he’s calling good games,” Girardi said. “He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do.”

Detroit Tigers
Baseball
New York Yankees
Burnett A J
Teixeira Mark
Rodriguez Alex


In Houston, Bush 41 Greets Obama, Who Later Assails G.O.P.

Abstract: HOUSTON — President Obama came to this Texas metropolis on Wednesday to raise money for Democrats, but the first person to welcome him to town was the city’s most prominent Republican, the first President George Bush. Mr. Bush, who just celebrated the 25th anniversary of the start of his presidency last weekend, decided on his own to travel to the Houston airport named after him to greet Mr. Obama when he landed Wednesday afternoon. Mr. Obama found Mr. Bush on the tarmac when he came down the stairs from Air Force One, and the two shared a convivial reunion. Mr. Bush, who is 89 and uses a wheelchair because a form of Parkinson’s disease has made it hard for him to stand, seemed in a cheerful mood as he chatted with Mr. Obama and the first lady, Michelle Obama. Mrs. Obama held Mr. Bush’s hand for the entire conversation, almost like a dutiful daughter, while Mr. Obama kept his hand respectfully on the former president’s shoulder. Mr. Bush, for his part, reached out to pat the back of Mr. Obama’s leg in a grandfatherly gesture. “I just wanted to say hello to the president and the first lady,” Mr. Bush told reporters afterward with a smile. “When the president comes to your hometown, you show up and welcome him.” Mr. Obama and Mr. Bush have long had a respectful and friendly relationship despite the past tensions between the current president and his predecessor, George W. Bush. Mr. Obama has said publicly and privately how much he admires the elder Mr. Bush and even said he tries to emulate his foreign policy. He gave the former president the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011 and brought him back to the White House last year to honor his work on volunteerism. Mr. Bush had signaled to the White House in the last day or so that he might come to the airport to see Mr. Obama, depending on how he felt. Advisers to Mr. Bush say he often loses energy in the afternoon, so it was not a sure thing. Mr. Obama learned shortly before arriving here that the visit would happen. After talking with the president, Mr. Bush greeted several journalists he remembered from his own days on Air Force One. “Look at you,” he told a photographer. “You don’t look any older.” Jay Carney, a former Time magazine reporter who now serves as Mr. Obama’s White House press secretary, made a point of introducing himself to Mr. Bush. “I know you,” Mr. Bush responded and shook his hand warmly. The president went from the airport to a pair of high-dollar fund-raisers for three Democratic Party groups at the homes of some of Houston’s wealthiest donors. The larger of the two was at the home of John Eddie Williams Jr., a prominent personal injury trial lawyer who won a landmark case against the tobacco industry in the 1990s. The president and about 70 guests mingled at Mr. Williams’s 26,000-square-foot home, which is worth $17 million and resembles a resort hotel, complete with five fireplaces, a swimming pool and an elevator. Just hours after chatting with the former Republican president, Mr. Obama used the second fund-raiser to assail Republicans for producing “the least productive Congress” in modern times. “We have to have a Congress that works — not one that is marching lock step, not one that agrees with every proposal I put forward, but a Congress that is serious about governance and is thinking about the next generation, not just the next election,” he said. He singled out Republican votes against a bill intended to help reduce pay disparities between men and women and what he called Republican efforts to discourage some people from voting. “Un-American,” Mr. Obama declared about the latter. “How is it that we are putting up with that?” He added that Democrats suffered from “this congenital disease” of not turning out in the same numbers during midterm elections because they are not perceived as important as presidential contests. “Michelle made me promise that 2012 would be my last campaign,” he said. “This is my last campaign. This counts.” Among those who traveled here with Mr. Obama was Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the House Democratic leader. Mayor Annise Parker, former Mayor Bill White, former Gov. Mark White and Representatives Sheila Jackson Lee and Al Green all attended. Not present was David Alameel, who is likely to be the Democratic nominee for Senate and whose campaign noted that he attended a fund-raiser with the president on a previous visit. Mr. Obama’s earlier encounter with Mr. Bush came at a time when former presidents are much in the spotlight. Mr. Bush enjoyed a three-day reunion of his old aides and allies at his presidential library in College Station, Tex., over the weekend, and his son opened the first exhibit of his post-presidential art at his own library in Dallas. Mr. Obama is one of four presidents who will be in Austin, Tex., this week for a conference commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act that has been organized by the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum. Jimmy Carter addressed the conference on Tuesday night, and Bill Clinton was scheduled to speak Wednesday. Mr. Obama is scheduled to deliver the keynote address on Thursday at midday, followed by the younger Mr. Bush that evening.

Houston
Democrats
Republicans
George Bush
Michelle Obama
Election
Barack Obama
George W Bush
US Politics
John Eddie Williams Jr


After Study, Healthy Changes Block by Block

Abstract: Seven years ago, Leony Calderón felt much older than her 30 years. “My joints hurt so much, it was hard to go up stairs,” Ms. Calderón said last week at her office at the Greater Humboldt Park Community Diabetes Empowerment Center. Dangerously overweight, she stopped menstruating, had high cholesterol and was pre-diabetic. She knew something had to be done. Humboldt Park, where Ms. Calderón lives and works, is the heart of Puerto Rican life in Chicago. It is also, as researchers from the Sinai Urban Health Institute discovered, the site of a full-blown diabetes epidemic. A survey conducted by Sinai and local community leaders from 2000 to 2006 showed that 21 percent of Puerto Ricans in Humboldt Park were diabetic, compared with 4 percent of Mexicans living in the same neighborhood and 11 percent of Puerto Ricans in New York City. The alarming findings could have easily faded from public view. But this information was hardly academic. It was the product of a 500-question survey written in consultation with community leaders, conducted by local residents and intended to promote a healthier lifestyle. Those factors, said Steve Whitman, director of the institute, set the survey apart from other urban-health initiatives. The results resonated within the community, Ms. Calderón said, in part because people trusted their interviewers. “It’s always easier to talk to a friend or a neighbor about something personal like health,” she said. Mr. Whitman said that because the community felt ownership of the data, residents were more compelled to act on it. “We showed up at a meeting after the results came out, and we thought maybe there would be 50 people there,” he said. “Instead, 700 people showed up.” That enthusiasm has inspired an array of community health initiatives, including improved produce selection and availability at local markets and free diabetes screenings at a local health center. “People have been talking about racial and socioeconomic inequities in health forever,” said Ami Shah, a senior epidemiologist at the institute. “But having these numbers that are personal, relevant, local — people start to react and respond in a new way.” Knowing that a problem exists, of course, is only one step. The challenge for underserved communities like Humboldt Park is to keep it from getting worse. “You can get a patient the exams they need for their diabetes, but in order to bring things under control, they have to exercise and eat the right food,” said Romana Hasnain-Wynia, director of the Center for Healthcare Equity at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “They need to feel safe walking outside, and they need grocery stores where they can buy fruits and vegetables.” Those are a few of the issues Humboldt Park activists hope to address with a new program called Block by Block. Part health-education campaign, part epidemiological survey, Block by Block encompasses the 72 blocks of Humboldt Park and offers residents free cooking instruction, support groups and exercise classes. Ms. Shah, along with Mr. Whitman and Maureen Benjamins, is co-editor of “Urban Health: Combating Disparities with Local Data.” Clunky title notwithstanding, the book, which was published in October by Oxford University Press, is engaging, detailing the key public health findings from eight years of individual interviews in eight diverse Chicago communities. As the Sinai data have shown over the past few years, Humboldt Park is not the only neighborhood in the Chicago area facing serious public health problems. Researchers found that 40 percent of adults in North Lawndale smoke, compared with 20 percent nationwide and citywide. And though 25 percent of children in the United States are obese or overweight, two-thirds of the children in the survey communities fell into those categories. Obesity is a particular challenge, investigators discovered, in the Orthodox Jewish community of West Rogers Park. The specifics of the Sinai approach — change-oriented and invested in the fate of a neighborhood — are distinctive, but they also reflect a sea change in the overall strategy of public health professionals, said Janine Lewis, executive director of the Illinois Maternal and Child Health Coalition, a nonprofit advocacy organization in Chicago. “I think the field is becoming more responsive to the idea of community-based participatory research,” Ms. Lewis said. “Those of us in the field realize that community members are experts on the needs and gifts in their communities, and should be consulted” at every phase of research. This approach, she added, not only helps investigators devise more meaningful questions, but also means residents feel a part of the process and motivated by the results. That sounded right to Ms. Calderón, who sees the impact of those results first-hand, every day. Now 50 pounds lighter, Ms. Calderón is the physical activities coordinator for Muévete (Movement), a component of Block by Block. She teaches an overflowing slate of weekly fitness classes at the Humboldt Park Field House and at the Diabetes Empowerment Center, including three dance-aerobics classes and two yoga sessions. Because of her weight and her family history, Ms. Calderón is still pre-diabetic, but is healthier in nearly every way measured by the Sinai health survey. This is precisely the kind of result Mr. Whitman said he and his colleagues had hoped for — and the reason for the Sinai approach to public health research. “Lots of people analyze and demonstrate health disparities,” he said. “The point is to fix them.”

Diabetes
Puerto Ricans
Medicine and Health
Chicago News Cooperative
Mexico


At Barclays, Two Surprise Guests, One of Them Tiny, Greet Hunter Mahan

Abstract: PARAMUS, N.J. — When he dropped his arms after sinking his eight-foot putt on the 18th hole, the look was one more of relief than of exhilaration for Hunter Mahan. He had made an adventure out of the final hole at Ridgewood Country Club on Sunday, hitting into the woods, then finding the rough before finishing with a bogey. But with a two-shot advantage over Jason Day, who was playing in the group behind him, Mahan still believed he had enough separation to win the Barclays, the first of four tournaments that make up the FedEx Cup. “I was thinking, ‘That was harder than it needed to be,’ ” Mahan said of his five strokes on No. 18, his only bogey of the day. Only then did Mahan finally notice his wife, Kandi, and their 1-year-old daughter, Zoe, standing off the green, a little road-weary after a trip from Kandi’s family’s home in Odessa, Tex., that afternoon. They had landed around 4:15 p.m. and had raced to the course, arriving when Mahan was two holes from finishing. “He had always said it’s a dream to win a tournament and have his baby girl there,” Kandi said. Last July, Mahan left the Canadian Open, which he was leading, after two rounds, to be at Zoe’s birth. On Sunday, Zoe was crawling around on the green as her father lifted a trophy for his first PGA Tour victory since 2012. “I wasn’t planning to see them until tomorrow,” Mahan said of his wife and daughter. “To see them right now and to win is a special feeling.” Mahan, who finished at 14 under par, holds the course record here, with a 62 in 2008, and he had said even he could envision a win this week. He jumped ahead with a 66 on Thursday before falling behind some of the others, like Day and Jim Furyk, who were tied at the top of the leader board at nine under entering Sunday. But Mahan played it safe in the fairways, and he was surgical with his iron play. He was seven for seven hitting greens in regulation to begin the back nine. There was plenty of competition. Day birdied four of his first seven holes, and also 13 and 14. Cameron Tringale shot a 32 on the front nine and was closing out with birdies on 15, 16 and 17 to get to 13 under par. Then there was Stuart Appleby, who seemed to rise out of nowhere to suddenly challenge for his first PGA Tour win since 2010. Appleby teed off nearly an hour before the leaders, but he birdied five of the first six holes after making the turn, zooming up to the top of the leader board. Image Mahan bogeyed the 18th, his only bogey of the day. Credit Barton Silverman/The New York Times “It’s been a long time,” Appleby said. “Today I just thought, Go out there, don’t fight; don’t wrestle the golf course. If you get an opportunity, give it a roll; see what happens.” Appleby, though, would get no further than 12 under par. Mahan said he had thought 13 under was the number that might finish in second place. He wanted to go even lower. On the par-5 17th, his playing partner, Morgan Hoffmann, missed his 29-foot putt wide to the left, but that gave Mahan a line for what he had left for birdie. “I saw Morgan’s putt and I had a feeling — I knew what this putt was going to do,” Mahan said. Indeed he did. He dropped to 15 under par with a putt that dropped dead center in the cup. “It felt good to make that one to kind of seal it with authority,” he said. There was still the 18th hole to play, and Mahan said he had not intended to mess around. Yet his tee shot sailed far to the right, and after playing a safe shot to get back into the fairway, his approach shot from 140 yards leaked left near a bunker. “I hardly hit one left all week,” Mahan said. “Sure enough, I hit it left.” So it made for a spot of drama, but Mahan quickly snuffed it with his bogey save. Day finished in a tie for second place at 12 under with Appleby and Tringale. Hoffmann, the fan favorite from nearby Wyckoff, N.J., received a rousing ovation when his hometown was announced on the first tee. And he looked as if he might really challenge for the title, birdieing the first hole with a 36-foot putt. He bogeyed the third and fourth holes, though, and while he managed to drive the green on the par-4 fifth hole, he wound up three-putting for par. And though he could not stay in contention himself, finishing at nine under, he had a front-row seat to an exceptional Sunday performance from Mahan. “He made birdies where he needed to and didn’t make mistakes,” Hoffmann said. “He’s a consistent player. It’s good to see.”


O’Hair Leads Woods by Five Shots at Bay Hill

Abstract: ORLANDO, Fla. — It is not every day that an overnight leader can bogey three of his final four holes and still widen his lead. Saturday at Bay Hill Club and Lodge in the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational was not every day. It was Sean O’Hair’s day, hot and nasty with temperatures in the 90s and winds blowing more than 30 miles per hour. O’Hair used his newly rebuilt golf swing to shoot a one-over-par 71 that was more than two strokes better than the field average. That put him at seven-under 203 and five strokes clear of Tiger Woods. Woods lost his ball on the 18th hole but still managed to hole a 25-footer for bogey and finished with a 71 that put him in second place at 208. No one who endured Bay Hill on Saturday would argue that trying to negotiate the final three holes without a bogey was an almost futile exercise. “I told my caddie when I was signing my scorecard, I bogeyed three of the last four holes, and I don’t think I missed a shot,” O’Hair said. “It was obviously a tough day for everybody, and I feel good that I played solid all day. The three bogeys didn’t reflect on how I played the last three holes.” Woods could say the same. He had reached four under par with birdies at the 12th and 13th holes but had to make a 10-footer for bogey at the 16th after chopping from rough to rough. After a solid par at the 17th, Woods made a mistake on the 18th tee, hitting his 3-wood to the right into the high grass, where the ball nestled into a gruesome lie. He nearly pulled off an escape, hitting an all-out, full-bore pitching wedge, but his ball caught a gust and dived into the heavy grass beneath the lake bank short of the green. “The wind is so blustery out there, it’s hard to get your distance correct, and then once you get on the green, the wind is blowing the ball on the green, so you’ve got to allow for wind on putts from 5, 6 feet,” Woods said. “It’s just a tough day.” Jason Gore, who began the day three strokes behind O’Hair, knew exactly what Woods meant. He battled hard all day, sometimes matching O’Hair shot for shot. On the 11th hole, O’Hair hit his approach 18 inches from the hole and Gore responded with a shot 2 ½ feet from the hole. It was all undone by the 17th and 18th holes, where Gore finished bogey-double bogey for a 74 that left him six strokes back. “The golf course played tough,” Gore said. “I felt like I hit some great shots, but you’ve just got to keep moving forward, stay focused.” Did Gore lose focus when his caddie stumbled on a sprinkler and fell as Gore was standing over a 6-foot putt for par at the 17th hole? Perhaps. Gore had to step back, regroup and then missed the putt. He compounded the error by three-putting from 5 feet to double bogey the 18th. Even with rain in the forecast for Sunday and Woods in the rearview mirror, O’Hair’s five-stroke lead may be too much to overcome. Woods has won from five strokes back before, but that was at Pebble Beach in 2000, the same year he won the United States Open by 15 strokes at Pebble during his almost otherworldly stretch of play. O’Hair is very much aware of Woods’s capacity for heroics and seems almost sanguine at the prospect of going head to head with him for the second straight year. He was in the final group with Woods last year and finished tied for third. O’Hair has matured as a golfer, though, and is more polished, with a more solid swing and a tougher mind. “You know, I just think people tend to get outside their game and almost watch him and not play their game,” said O’Hair, who said he had done just that when he shot a 69 to Woods’s 66 in 2008. “I think I’ve learned from that, and I’m playing well. I feel like mentally I’m a lot stronger this year than I’ve ever been.” He will need to be. Woods’s game is sharpening, and no one is between him and O’Hair. Head to head is where Woods has made his reputation. “We’ll see what happens,” Woods said. Predictions are not his thing. A knack for the uncanny is. His putt for bogey Saturday was a near mirror-image of the one Woods made for birdie to win last year. It also was the longest putt he has made all week. Portent or coincidence? Sunday will tell.


Lady Joanne Hangs on to Win Alabama Stakes

Abstract: SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y., Aug. 18 (AP) — Two days before the running of the Grade I Alabama Stakes at Saratoga Race Course, the trainer Carl Nafzger stood on the backside and contemplated the potential of his entry, the 3-year-old Lady Joanne. “It’ll be the toughest race she’s run by far,” Nafzger said. “It’ll be her biggest challenge.” Lady Joanne proved she was up to the challenge Saturday when she fought off Octave and Lear’s Princess in a tough stretch run to win the $500,000 Alabama for her owner, Bentley L. Smith. Lady Joanne held off the closing Lear’s Princess and a run from Octave, who charged on the rail in the final strides of the one-and-one-quarter-mile race. Lady Joanne drifted in the stretch, prompting a steward’s inquiry, but the results were allowed to stand. The winning time was 2 minutes 8.62 seconds. It was Lady Joanne’s sixth victory in nine career starts. She has never finished worse than third. Lady Joanne paid $11, $5.30, and $3.20 on a $2 bet across the board. Lear’s Princess and Eibar Coa brought $5.30 and $3 to place, and Octave returned $2.60 to show under John Velazquez. Nafzger said Lady Joanne would probably make her next start in the Oct. 7 Juddmonte Spinster at Keeneland, while pointing toward a berth in the Oct. 27 Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Monmouth Park.

Alabama
Monmouth Park
Velazquez John
Horse Racing
Nafzger Carl
Saratoga Springs (NY)