Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Ringling circus agrees to $270K fine by USDA

(AP) ? VIENNA, Virginia (AP) ? The owner of the Ringling Bros. circus has agreed to pay a $270,000 fine to settle allegations that it violated federal animal-welfare laws in its handling of elephants, tigers, zebras and other exotic animals.

?????The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the civil penalty announced Monday is the largest ever assessed against an animal exhibitor under the Animal Welfare Act.

?????Vienna-based Feld Entertainment, which owns the circus and other well-known acts such as Disney on Ice, said it does not admit to violating the law and agreed to the settlement as a cost of doing business to resolve its differences with the USDA.

?????"We look forward to working with the USDA in a cooperative and transparent manner that meets our shared goal of ensuring that our animals are healthy and receive the highest quality care," said a statement released by Kenneth Feld, chief executive officer of Feld Entertainment.

?????In inspection reports from 2007 through this year, inspectors said circus handlers made elephants perform when they were ill and used the same wheelbarrows to feed meat to tigers and haul away their waste, among other allegations.

?????An inspection report from August alleged that a 35-year-old female Asian elephant, Banko, was forced to perform at a show in Los Angeles despite a diagnosis of sand colic and observations that she appeared to be suffering abdominal discomfort. Circus officials told the inspectors that separating Banko from the performing elephants would have been even more distressing to her.

?????The inspection reports also cited splintered floors and rusted cages used to contain big cats such as tigers, and an incident in March 2008 where two zebras briefly got loose from their enclosure at 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore. In 2010, another zebra escaped its enclosures in Atlanta and had to be captured by area law enforcement, according to the reports.

?????Feld spokesman Steve Payne said that, generally, the circus has seen an increase in recent years in inspections not only by the USDA but also by state and local regulators. He said that from June to September, one of the circus' traveling units was inspected 82 times by 18 different agencies.

?????"We're highly regulated. We accept that regulation. We embrace it," Payne said.

?????Norfolk-based People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which has filed numerous complaints with USDA against the circus, especially for its handling of elephants, said the fine is a good first step. But it called on the government to confiscate the elephants.

?????"What remains to be done is for the public to be made aware of this history of abuse so that people will know to keep their children away from the circus," PETA said.

?????As part of the settlement, Ringling also agreed to hire a compliance officer who will ensure that all employees follow the rules outlined in the Animal Welfare Act. All employees who handle animals will also have to undergo compliance training.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-11-28-Ringling-Fine/id-08c5421473f045788edcbee355e371d7

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Former Ivorian president arrives to face ICC (Reuters)

ROTTERDAM (Reuters) ? A plane carrying former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo, facing an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court, arrived at Rotterdam airport Wednesday, a Reuters witness said.

The Hague-based court, which is also pursuing Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir and investigating alleged crimes in Kenya, Libya and Central African Republic, has so far declined to comment on the warrant.

Gbagbo would be the first former head of state to be tried by the ICC since its inception in 2002.

The ICC opened an investigation last month into killings, rapes and other abuses committed during a four-month conflict triggered by Gbagbo's refusal to cede power to Alassane Ouattara in last year's Ivorian election. The conflict ended only when French-backed pro-Ouattara forces captured him on April 11.

The ICC's silence means there is as yet no information on what exactly Gbagbo is to be charged with.

The Ivory Coast plane landed at Rotterdam airport at 0244 GMT and entered a hangar, the Reuters witness said.

Gbagbo had been flown by helicopter Tuesday from remote Korhogo in northern Ivory Coast, where he had been under house arrest since his capture, and transferred on to a plane, Ivorian military officials said.

(Reporting By Vanessa Romeo)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111130/wl_nm/us_ivorycoast_gbagbo

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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Janitor accused of killing NJ priest takes stand (Providence Journal)

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Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/167403730?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Monday, November 28, 2011

Egypt protesters clash with police, one dead (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) ? Protesters demanding an end to army rule clashed with police firing tear gas near Egypt's parliament building on Saturday in a flare-up that cast another shadow over a parliamentary election billed as the nation's first free vote in decades.

Protesters said one man, Ahmed Sayed, 21, died after being hit by a state security vehicle. His death was the first since a truce between police and demonstrators on Thursday calmed violence that had killed 41 people in Cairo and elsewhere.

Egypt's Interior Ministry said the vehicle had hit him by accident.

Hundreds of demonstrators camped overnight in Cairo's Tahrir Square ahead of the election, due to start on Monday in Cairo, Alexandria and some other areas.

The clash occurred after one group marched to parliament to protest against the army's appointment of 78-year-old Kamal Ganzouri, a premier under Hosni Mubarak, as new prime minister.

"Down, down with the marshal," a group chanted in the square, near tents set up on grassy patches. They were referring to Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, who heads the ruling army council and was Mubarak's defense minister for 20 years.

The military council said on Friday each stage of voting would be held over two days instead of one to give everyone the chance to vote. Voting starts on Monday but will not end until early January because of the election's various stages.

Tahrir protesters have dismissed Ganzouri, premier from 1996 to 1999, as another face from the past whose appointment reflects the generals' resistance to change.

"Why are they picking Ganzouri now? This shows that the army is unwilling to let go of any power by recycling a former ally. This government won't have any powers, why else pick someone that is loyal to them?" asked protester Mohamed El Meligy, 20.

Tens of thousands gathered on Friday to demand that the army council leave power now to accelerate a transition to democracy.

Alarmed by the violence, The United States and the European Union have urged a swift handover to civilian rule in a country where prolonged political turmoil has compounded economic woes.

The generals have resisted calls to quit now. Instead, they have promised that a new president will be elected by mid-2012, sooner than previously announced, and on Friday named Ganzouri to head a "national salvation government."

Ganzouri described his task as thankless and "extremely difficult," saying his priority was to secure the streets and revive the economy. Egypt's pound has hit a seven-year low and foreign reserves have dropped by a third since December 2010.

DIVIDE

While tens of thousands packed Tahrir Square for what activists dubbed "Last Chance Friday," at least 5,000 people demonstrated in support of the army in another Cairo square, highlighting splits between youngsters bent on radical reform and more cautious Egyptians keen to restore normality.

Ganzouri's appointment has reinforced that divide.

"He is a very good man, he did a lot of good things. If he had continued in his role (in 1999) the situation would have been much better," said restaurant worker Osama Amara, 22.

Protest groups have put forward their own demands for a government they want to be headed by presidential candidate and former U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei.

They have also called for another mass rally on Sunday to press demands for an immediate transfer of power from the military to a civilian national salvation government.

In Tahrir, shunned by main political groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party this week, some protesters said the vote should be delayed.

The Brotherhood, Egypt's best organized political force, wants the election to go ahead as scheduled.

"Believe me, I don't know who I am going to vote for," said Hoda Ragab, a 55-year-old woman at Friday's protest in Tahrir, adding that elections should be postponed until calm returned.

(Additional reporting by Mohamed Abdellah, Marwa Awad and Reuters Television; Writing by Alistair Lyon)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111126/wl_nm/us_egypt_protests

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Video: N.H. paper endorses Gingrich as primary nears (cbsnews)

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Wednesday, November 16, 2011

small dead animals: Potential Cancer Vaccine?

Potential Cancer Vaccine?

A tiny nation in the middle of an intellectual wasteland has yet another scientific breakthrough;

In a breakthrough development, the Israeli company Vaxil BioTherapeutics has formulated a therapeutic cancer vaccine, now in clinical trials at Hadassah University Medical Center in Jerusalem. If all goes well, the vaccine could be available about six years down the road, to administer on a regular basis not only to help treat cancer but in order to keep the disease from recurring.

The vaccine is being tested against a type of blood cancer called multiple myeloma. If the substance works as hoped ? and it looks like all arrows are pointing that way ? its platform technology VaxHit could be applied to 90 percent of all known cancers, including prostate and breast cancer, solid and non-solid tumors.

Some countries have all the luck.

Posted by Kate at November 15, 2011 12:56 PM

It's just another plot by the Zionists to take over the world. The vaccine is probably made from the blood of children, or something like that. /bigot

As Instapundit says, Faster please.

We have 6 years to fix medicare then. People are gonna live forever after this.

Gee, hard to believe that this was developped by one of those great Muslim countries in the area. On a more serious note I have always found impossible to understand why the Arab countries to which Israel has over and over again offered assistance in development preferred to remain backwards due to their hatred of Jews. Egypt with a "peace treaty" with Israel was a prime example. It seems there is much truth in the expression of being blinded by hate.

I meant "was not developped by one of those..."

You watch if this thing works and it goes to market bleeding heart liberals will complain that they are profiting from it. When they do I say we tell them to boycott the treatment then.

Saved by the Ezra-lites from the Levant!!

My wife's friend just had breast cancer surgery, and is now in stage 3, grade 2 lobular cancer a candidate for chemotherapy.

Should she survive she may well be needing this vaccine.

Cheers


Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief

1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group ?True North?

Outside of the research having been done in Canada this type of success couldn't happen to a more deserving country.

As much as I would love to see a cancer vaccine, I just don't think it will ever happen due to the multi-billion industry it has become. The so called cancer treatment and research facilities would do anything to prevent an actual cure from being developed. There are too many high paying jobs that would be lost in the process.

?I just don't think it will ever happen due to the multi-billion industry it has become. .... There are too many high paying jobs that would be lost in the process.?

Toontownguy, how can you bear to get out of bed every morning, into a world of such overwhelming evil?

I am not surprised. Wherever there is stunning scientific break-though, you will most likely find one or more Jew near the top leading the way.

Given enough time, the Jew might just develop Warp Drive so they can leave this sorry planet and find a new and better place to excel.

I just pray that they use their good sense and not bring any of the rest of us with them.

'It's the only way to be sure. ' - Ripley

Them Joos are probly making a cancer virus to infect their peaceful Arab neighbours, then deny them the cure-y stuff that they are hogging to themselves.

Cal,

Don't be too quick to judge Toontown, You should know how voraciously people will fight, cheat and steal to protect their lively-hood. Hell, some unions will kill people who mess with their golden goose.

Many people ARE evil.

This potential treatment for some cancers in some cases will add one more irony to the religion of peace's pile of ironic, stupid and usually unsubstantiated reasons to hate Jews and all things Jewish. If the vaccine works (insha? allah!) the ROP scholarly religious leaders, as they have done before with other life saving vaccines, will refuse to let their followers take the drug because it will be an evil plot for some obscure reason to be announced at a future date. If necessary to cure themselves of cancer, the scholarly religious leaders of the religion of peace would go to Israel for treatment for themselves and come up with a scholarly religious justification also to be announced at a future date.

If I had a nickel for every time cancer has been cured on the internet....

"Don't be too quick to judge Toontown,"
How about if I just laugh? I am already aware of the evil existing in our world, but the perpetrators are not impotent. The problem with most conspiracies is they involve silencing potentially thousands of people for an unlimited period of time. Death? Pay offs?
Now, excuse me while I count the money I got for my 200 mpg carburetor.

Toontownguy:
My parents said the same thing 30 years ago. They also told me 40 years ago to be wary of "experts", especially of those who are waving a piece of paper.
They were absolutely correct about the latter and in light of the AGW scam, might be on the former. Money, esp BIG MONEY, does corrupt.

What's the big deal, Obamba has a "Nobel Peace Prize" which pretty much wipes out the Jewish domination of Nobel Prizes in Physics and science doesn?t it?

The left has spoken, and it has been determined that Jooooos are nothing compared to an part time Islamic black Affirmative Action messiah, who happens to really really likes golfing and watching B-ball with the homeys.

Just wait until they meet up with the EPA.

Don't believe me? Check out this man's story.

More Zionist lies. It is a cancer-causing drug that the evil Jooos have developed. They will offer it to the Muslim world and with their trademark perfidity, hope to defeat Islam through treachery and help from the Great Satan United States.

Did that sound about right? I can't quite get the tone correct. I'm sure we'll see something like that in the CBC comments. Or rabble.ca for sure.

Hurrah for the Qataris! OH WAIT....

Seriously, congratulations to the Israelis. I hope those responsible end up with so much money and so many Nobel Prizes they don't know where to put it all.

Toontownguy may have a point about the resistance this will face. The US cancer industry was estimated at $15billion/annum in the early '90s and I suspect that sum has grown considerably. There has been a great deal of collusion between the FDA and the American Cancer Institute in the past to squelch any treatment that threatened to replace chemotherapy.


More to the point, will this vaccine be covered by our 'free' healthcare system where everyone is told what to do, what is allowed and when you can get it by the unelected bureaucracy? Curse you, Tommy Douglas!

Pretty neat stuff coming from sons of pigs and monkeys. Who'da thought!
( for those who are thick-headed, I am being sarcastic.)

There go the Jews again, doing clever things. I am sure the Palestinians are irate.

Now if only the Jews in America were smart enough to stop supporting Obama. Something seems to happen to them the moment they leave Israel.

nnffoos has a point.
It is a vast right-wing conspiracy developed by the Elders of Zion in concert with the Freemasons.
The drug will only be available to them. Eventually they will have total control of the world.
You got to admit, those Jews are a clever people.
I hear that part of the chemical compound consists of a drop of blood from a Muslim boy-child.

A show hosted by a Bill Whittle named "Afterburner"? Would he by any chance be descended from Sir Frank Whittle, the inventor of the turbojet?

If this vaccine fulfills its potential, I expect leftists and their muslim fellow travelers everywhere to stand up for their principles and boycott it -- pfffft, yeah, fat chance of that!

Al_in_Ottawa >

"I hope those responsible end up with so much money and so many Nobel Prizes they don't know where to put it all."


As pointed out, Nobel Prizes have proven to be worthless jokes. Just take the money, they'll be in better company.

@ grok
Here's a sample of the real thing.
I'll put it this way pilgrim. Your effort beats my John Wayne impression.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in his Own Words

"Today, it is clear that Israel is the most hated regime in the world? It is not useful for its masters [the West] anymore. They are in doubt now. They wonder whether to continue spending money on this regime or not?But whether they want it or not, with God's grace, this regime will be annihilated and Palestinians and other regional nations will be rid of its bad omen."

Sound like somebody pissed in Mahmoud's cornflakes this morning.

If the Palestinians ever succeed in completely taking over Israel, don't hold your breath for this kind of cutting edge stuff to come out of there. If they were smart they'd beg the Israelis to stay. Who else will do their emergency surgeries and cure their diseases?

Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief, best wishes to your wife.

tonntownguy - yup, just like Big Iron Lung killed off the polio vaccine before it had a chance to develop. They sure dodged a bullet there, didn't they?
/sarc

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Source: http://www.smalldeadanimals.com/archives/018402.html

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TinEye Client Finds Similar Images with a Right-Click [Windows Downloads]

TinEye Client Finds Similar Images with a Right-ClickWindows: You're probably familiar with the very handy TinEye, the reverse image search engine that scours the web for similar copies of an picture. TinEye Client makes it even easier to search by letting you right-click any image in Windows and to bring up similar (and hopefully larger) versions in a near instant.

All you have to do is install TinEye client, right-click an image, and a TinEye option will appear in your Windows Explorer context menu. Just select it and a window will open in your default web browser with the results. Aside from more manual upload options that the app offers?which is essentially a desktop version of what you get with the TinEye web site?that's all there is to it. We only wish you could right click images outside of Windows Explorer, such as in your web browser, but there is an extension for that.

TinEye Client | At My Window via FreewareGenius via Addictive Tips


You can follow Adam Dachis, the author of this post, on Twitter, Google+, and Facebook. ?Twitter's the best way to contact him, too.

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/L8AfAQPi2pI/tineye-client-finds-similar-images-with-a-right+click

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Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Futures slide as euro zone fears persist (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? U.S. stock index futures fell on Tuesday, extending a drop in global equities, as doubts about the ability of Europe to tackle its debt crisis sent Italy's bond yields back into a perceived danger zone.

Prime Minister-designate Mario Monti is meeting the leaders of Italy's biggest two parties to discuss the "many sacrifices" needed to reverse a collapse in market confidence as the yield on Italy's 10-year benchmark bond leaped above 7 percent.

European stocks (.FTEU3) fell 1.1 percent in early trading, adding to the previous session's drop, and following on from weakness in Asian markets overnight, where Tokyo's Nikkei 225 (.NK225) closed down 0.7 percent.

"The danger is -- and the markets are keenly aware of this -- that this crisis, like most, turn on a dime and can blow up very, very quickly," said Oliver Pursche, president of Gary Goldberg Financial Services in Suffern, New York.

U.S. bank shares, sensitive to flare-ups in Europe's debt crisis, looked set to be among the biggest losers. In premarket trade, shares of Citigroup Inc (C.N) fell 1.8 percent to $27.87, while the SPDR financial exchange traded fund (XLF.P) dropped 1.5 percent.

"As long as the (European Central Bank) continues to be unwilling to become the lender of last resort and really pull out the bazooka you are going to continue to see these scares," said Pursche.

S&P 500 futures fell 11.4 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration of the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures slid 110 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures lost 20.5 points.

When Italian bond yields rose above 7 percent last week, the S&P 500 fell nearly 4 percent in one day. Heightened volatility has marked U.S. equities trading recently as investors fret about the debt crisis.

Bond prices in other European nations also rose sharply. In France and Austria, yields on the benchmark 10-year both hit 3.6 percent.

The rise in the yields of countries that were until recently thought to be more isolated from the crisis is creating new worries of a wider conflagration in European debt markets.

In the latest earnings reports, Wal-Mart Stores Inc'S (WMT.N) quarterly profit missed expectations as the economy continues to weigh on customers at Wal-Mart U.S., its largest division. Its shares dropped 2.3 percent to $57.52.

Home Depot Inc (HD.N) reported stronger-than-expected results, sending it shares up 2 percent to $39.02.

On the economic front, the Commerce Department releases October retail sales at 8:30 a.m. EST (1330 GMT). Economists expect an increase of 0.3 percent in October versus a 1.1 percent rise in September. Excluding automobiles, sales are expected to increase 0.1 percent versus a 0.6 percent rise in September.

The Labor Department releases the October Producer Price Index at 8:30 a.m. (1330 GMT). Economists forecast a fall of 0.1 percent versus a 0.8 percent rise in September. Excluding volatile food and energy items, PPI is expected to rise 0.1 percent versus a 0.2 percent increase in the prior month.

The New York Federal Reserve releases its Empire State Manufacturing Survey for November at 8:30 a.m. (1330 GMT). Economists look for a reading of minus 2.10 compared with minus 8.48 in October.

(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111115/bs_nm/us_markets_stocks

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Monday, November 14, 2011

Kristen Stewart on Breaking Dawn Birth Scene: Intense!


Kristen Stewart is about to give birth. On screen, that is. To a half-human/half-vampire baby. What was filming this key Breaking Dawn scene like?

“I was so excited, actually,” Stewart told Jimmy Kimmel on Friday about shooting this major Twilight Saga event. “It is so intense, as a normal birth would be, but this is even more so."

The actress - who will also star in Snow White and the Huntsman, a summer blockbuster whose first trailer you can view HERE - was also asked about the honor of having her hands and footprints cemented outside Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Watch her talk about that and other topics in the two videos below.

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/11/kristen-stewart-on-breaking-dawn-birth-scene-intense/

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Is There Media Bias Against Conservative Herman Cain? (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | For over a week now the mainstream media has inundated the airwaves and print pages with unsubstantiated and anonymous claims of sexual harassment waged against GOP Presidential hopeful Herman Cain.

These same media outlets have virtually ignored the indiscretions of Barack Obama, such as his involvement with domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, his ties to the greenhouse gas industry, or the accusation of one Larry Sinclair who claims to have performed oral sex on Obama in 1999 while the then Senator smoked crack cocaine and further asserts that Obama was involved in the murder of Donald Young, a gay choir director at the President's former church, Trinity United Church of Christ.

Sinclair alleges that Young was Obama's gay lover and was subsequently murdered to cover up this affair. Young's death was reported on Dec. 4, 2007.

ABC News quoted Obama's spiritual leader, Jeremiah Wright, saying of Young, "He was one of those success stories, the average person would look at and say he doesn't have a chance."

Of his own involvement with Sen. Obama, Sinclair stated that on Nov. 6, 1999, "Senator Obama produced a glass cylinder pipe and packet of crack cocaine from his pants pocket and Obama smoked the crack cocaine. I performed fellatio on Senator Obama in the limousine during the time Senator Obama was smoking crack cocaine..." [sic]

Sinclair advised that Obama came to his hotel room again the next day at which time the two ingested cocaine and Sinclair again performed oral sex on the Senator.

None of this has garnered more than a passing glance in the mainstream media, yet the Cain accusations show 186 results on a Yahoo search for news (not to be confused with Yahoo! News) on Nov. 10 from sources such as CNN, CBS and others.

What also seems to elude reporters is that a confidentiality agreement applies to the accused as well as the accuser, and that Cain likely cannot reveal certain aspects or may not even know what the agreement entails. Conservative radio host andconstitutional attorney Mark Levin made this point on his Nov. 1 radio show.

It has also been reported that one of the accusers, Sharon Bialek, was witnessed hugging Cain during a Tea Party Convention that took place Sept. 30 and Oct. 1. This is clearly odd behavior for a woman he supposedly harassed a decade ago.

Another prominent Democrat figure facing a sexual harassment accusation, and under-reported by the mainstream media, is Jesse Jackson who is accused of fondling himself provocatively while speaking to a gay employee, requesting oral sex from the employee. This is according to a complaint filed with the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations.

The employee, Tommy R. Bennett, filed suit, says the Chicago Tribune, against Jackson in Cook County Circuit Court in September.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20111111/us_ac/10410529_is_there_media_bias_against_conservative_herman_cain

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Sunday, November 13, 2011

In a week of stunning scandal, Penn State falls to Nebraska 17-14

A tumultuous chapter that began with the arrest of former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky on child sexual abuse charges ended Saturday with?Penn?State losing its first game in the post-Joe Paterno era.

Capping the worst week in school history, No. 12?Penn?State?couldn't overcome a 17-point deficit and was stopped short on a 4th-and-1 late in a 17-14 loss Saturday to No. 19 Nebraska.

Skip to next paragraph

The outcome was secondary in Happy Valley.

A tumultuous chapter that began with the arrest of former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky on shocking child sexual abuse charges ended Saturday with?Penn?State?(8-2, 5-1 Big Ten) losing in its first game in the post-Joe Paterno era. The winningest major college football coach in history was fired Wednesday.

The Monitor's Weekly News Quiz for Nov. 6-11, 2011

Rex Burkhead ran for 121 yards and a touchdown for Nebraska (8-2, 4-2) before the Nittany Lions scored 14 points on two second-half touchdown runs by Stephfon Green.

But a key drive ended when Silas Redd was stopped on the fourth down with 1:49 left at the?Penn?State?38.

Most?Penn?State?fans heeded calls for a "blueout," wearing the school's familiar dark blue in support of victims of child sexual abuse. Fans formed the outline of a blue ribbon in the student section.

"We are ...?Penn?State," roared the crowd through the afternoon, the signature?State?College cheer.

But this school's identity has forever changed.

Sandusky, architect of the "Linebacker U." defenses, was charged last weekend with sexually abusing eight boys over 15 years. The athletic director and a university vice president were charged with perjury and failure to report a 2002 allegation to police, and Paterno was fired following mounting fury that he did not do more about one charge ? that Sandusky assaulted a boy in the?Penn?State?football showers ? than pass it along to his bosses. President Graham Spanier also was fired for similar reasons.

The last time?Penn?State?played a game at Beaver Stadium on Oct. 29, Paterno was feted by Spanier for his 409th career victory, the most in Division I history.

On Saturday, he was nowhere to be found ? save for a few fleeting images on the video boards overhead. That was enough to get spontaneous cheers of "Joe Paterno!" ringing through the stands.

Paterno started as an assistant in 1950, then took over as head coach in 1966. It was?Penn?State's?first game without Paterno on staff since Nov. 19, 1949, a 19-0 loss at Pittsburgh

But in many respects, it was like any other fall Saturday in Happy Valley. Massive 6-foot-5 defensive tackle Devon Still hit ball carriers with typical ferocity and the Nittany Lions played another close, low-scoring game ? as they have all year.

Penn?State's?first play from scrimmage was a fullback run up the middle ? a Paterno favorite. The offense struggled again.

And someone named "Paterno" wore a path on the sideline wearing jet black Nike sneakers.

Just not that Paterno.

Paterno's son, quarterback coach Jay Paterno, moved down from his usual spot in the press box to relay plays ? a job once held by assistant coach Mike McQueary.

McQueary was missing, too, after being placed on indefinite paid leave Friday by the school. His name surfaced as a grand jury witness to the 2002 abuse charge. Sandusky, who retired in 1999 but lives in the area and had access to school facilities, maintains his innocence.

McQueary, Paterno says, told him that Sandusky had behaved inappropriately, but not to the extent of the detailed testimony. Paterno then passed the information on to Curley, but the report was not given to police.

News of the scandal elicited threats to McQueary, the school said, and brought heightened security.

But there were no visible problems during the game. By the second half, the only stress affecting fans was whether the Nittany Lions could get back into the game.

The Cornhuskers built a 17-0 lead, with Burkhead gashing?Penn?State's?staunch D on 25 carries. He motored 14 yards into the end zone with 8:51 left in the third quarter for a 17-0 lead.

Then came the second-half push from Green on Senior Day ? his last game at Beaver Stadium. The senior scored from 5 yards with 5:07 in the third quarter, then added a 6-yard run at 5:42 of the fourth to get?Penn?State?within three. Green finished with 71 yards on 17 carries.

But the offense faltered on two late drives, including the fourth-and-1 stop of Redd. Out of timeouts with 49 seconds left, the Nittany Lions got the ball back but could get no farther than their own 46 before time expired.

The fans cheered anyway, and greeted the Nittany Lions with one more chorus of "We are ...?Penn?State."

The Monitor's Weekly News Quiz for Nov. 6-11, 2011

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/9SODIeAq-zM/In-a-week-of-stunning-scandal-Penn-State-falls-to-Nebraska-17-14

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Colin Powell: Occupy Wall Street Demonstrations Are 'As American As Apple Pie'

Speaking to small crowd at a retirement community in Florida on Oct. 4, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney expressed an unsympathetic view of the Occupy Wall Street movement. "I think it's dangerous, this class warfare," he said. Romney declined to comment further when asked about the protests by ABC. His response? "I'm just trying to get myself to occupy the White House."

During a campaign stop in New Hampshire Oct. 10 Romney was a bit more sympathetic. "I worry about the 99 percent in America," he said, later adding, "I understand how those people feel."

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/11/colin-powell-occupy-wall-street_n_1088141.html

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England beats No. 1 Spain

By ROB HARRIS

updated 5:14 p.m. ET Nov. 12, 2011

WEMBLEY, England - Frank Lampard scored on a header four minutes into the second half to lead England past Spain 1-0 Saturday, the fourth loss for the Spaniards since they won the World Cup.

Lampard struck after Darren Bent's header came off the post, giving England a victory at Wembley Stadium after being outplayed most of the way.

"The fact England only got near the goal with that chance from the free kick did show we dominated the game," Spain coach Vicente del Bosque said through a translator.

"But I'm a bit disappointed, almost angry, that we didn't manage to win," he added. "At key moments in the game perhaps we lacked a bit of speed."

After Lampard scored, Spain squandered its chances. David Villa hit the post and Cesc Fabregas twice came close twice toward the end.

Spain has also lost to Argentina, Portugal and Italy since winning the 2010 World Cup, although the European champions won every Euro 2012 qualifier.

"I don't think it's a case of us approaching these four games in too complacent a manner," Del Bosque said. "We lacked that skillful, defining moment. England carried out the manager's orders to the absolute letter."

Beating the European champions will give England a boost leading to Euro 2012. England missed out on the 2008 tournament and then played dismally at the World Cup.

"It's great to beat them now ? they are the best team in the world," Lampard said. "We won't get carried away over the fact we beat them. Let's be realistic, they dominated the game. ... We are not quite where we want to be just yet."

Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas played his 126th international game, matching his country's record for appearances. He equaled the mark set by goalie Andoni Zubizarreta from 1985 to 1998.

"We didn't deserve to lose today," Casillas said. "It's a pity I couldn't celebrate with a victory."

Lampard was designated England's captain after John Terry was benched, a move coach Fabio Capello insisted was not tied to the ongoing police investigation over his alleged racism.

England played without star striker Wayne Rooney. Capello tested Danny Welbeck and Bent in preparation for Rooney missing the three Euro 2012 group stage matches after his ban by European soccer's governing body.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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Frank Lampard scored on a header four minutes into the second half Saturday, leading England to a 1-0 victory over World Cup and European champion Spain at Wembley Stadium.

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Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45269146/ns/sports-soccer/

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Saturday, November 12, 2011

Lebanon's former prime minister Saad Hariri fights on Twitter (Time.com)

Young revolutionaries are no longer the only ones in the Arab world waging politics on Twitter: Even senior Lebanese political leaders have begun delving into the social media fray, sparking news, debate and more than a few smirks.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati, with just over 5,000 followers, is already an old hand, having first tweeted back in January. Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who has been abroad since April (mainly in Paris and Riyadh) has had a Twitter account for most of this year, but it was only a few days ago that his 140-character communiques began sounding as if they weren't written by an automaton.(See photos of protests in Lebanon.)

"Well its about time to make this more up close and personel," Hariri tweeted on Nov. 3, "you be hearing from me more often and i'll be around as much as i can." True to his word, Hariri has devoted an hour or two of every evening since to engaging his followers (14,000 and counting) in frank, lively q&a sessions.

Immediate access to political figures is a novelty in a country where the divide between elites and everyone else is sharp, and politicians are not accustomed to being called to account. But social media is changing the game.

Mikati has largely used his mainly English-language tweets to serve as cheerleader in chief for national unity, when he's not documenting time spent with his grandchildren and revisiting places he and his wife May saw on their honeymoon. But he has used the medium to get beyond his buttoned-up persona, and identify with everyman concerns. "Traffic jams are suffocating!" he recently tweeted. "The roads of my country ought to become safer & more fluid...Working on it!" Amusingly, the premier tends to sign his messages N.M., lest anyone doubt their authenticity.(Watch Hizballah's New War Theme Park.)

He has also used the medium for "digital diplomacy," engaging in a twitter Q&A session that involved the British ambassador to Lebanon ahead of a recent meeting with British Prime Minister David Cameron.

But it has been Hariri's nightly Twitterfests that have the Lebanese media aflutter. Tweeting in English (much to the chagrin of some of his followers) he has used the platform for everything from blasting the "massacres" unleashed by the Syrian regime against its own people, to revealing his love of soccer, diving, and Harley Davidsons. And, of course, he has also addressed the issue of the U.N.-sponsored tribunal into the murder of his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri ? which has pinned the murder on members of Hizballah, sparking an ongoing crisis within Lebanese politics pitting the Syrian-backed Shi'ite Hizballah movement and its allies in the current ruling coalition against the fiercely anti-Syrian opposition led by Hariri. Mikati is stuck somewhere in the middle.

Asked on Twitter about what Mikati may do if his hand is forced by Hizballah and its allies who are demanding that Lebanon break from the tribunal, Hariri expressed doubt that the premier would keep his promise to resign, and predicted Mikati would indeed cut Lebanese funding to the tribunal. "There will (be) consequences on people and i hope not on lebanon," Hariri wrote.(Read "Syria's Long Shadow Creeps Into Lebanon.")

Some followers initially expressed doubts that the person operating the twitter account in his name really was the young billionaire politician, prompting Hariri to tweet "It's me, Saad, you are talking to. Believe it."

He politely fields numerous requests for personal audiences ("call my office") and tries to make himself accessible: "R u going to only answer political question or could ask u about anything? Nothing personal of course," wrote one follower. "Ask anything you want," Hariri responded. The question was about Playstation, and if the former premier plays it. (He doesn't but his son does.)

Still, the Hariri tweet that had everyone in Beirut talking was about the Shi'ite speaker of the House, Nabih Berri, an ally of Syria and Hizballah who was voted into another term at the helm of parliament by his allies, with the support of Hariri's bloc.

"No voting for berri anymore if we win the election that is a promise," Hariri said in response to a question. Not convinced, the questioner tweeted back: "With all my respect, plz dont make promises u cant keep," prompting Hariri to write this: "i will keep it believe me and i promise."

Not one to take a slight easily, the loquacious speaker got his own in the traditional media: "Hariri has revealed in his electronic messages a number of his personal hobbies these days, one of which is diving. The Lebanese have also discovered a new hobby of the 'sheikh' and that is of politics. Better he dive in the former than the latter," Berri said in a statement.

Oh, Snap! Hariri waited until the following evening's Twitter session to get in another crack. When asked by a follower what he would teach if he could teach anything, Hariri said, "scuba diving, in spite of Mr Berri." Looks like a Twitter fight might be brewing. Stay tuned!

See why Hizballah accused are untroubled by indictment for Hariri murder.

See TIME's Pictures of the Week.

View this article on Time.com

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/time/20111110/wl_time/08599209901400

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Friday, November 11, 2011

NY accountant admits bilking 'SVU' actress Tunie (AP)

NEW YORK ? An accountant admitted Thursday he made "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" actress Tamara Tunie a real-life crime victim by stealing more than $1 million from her, the Kansas City Symphony's music director and other clients.

Joseph Cilibrasi, who was Tunie's business manager for more than a decade and cultivated other clients in the arts, pleaded guilty to grand larceny and other charges. He used some of the stolen cash to finance his own forays into entertainment, including investing in movies and Broadway shows and hiring a screenwriter to pen a script about a historic building, prosecutors say.

Cilibrasi's plea deal calls for 2 1/2 to 7 1/2 years in prison. He is free, pending a Jan. 4 sentencing.

Cilibrasi, 51, told a Manhattan judge he secretly opened a credit card account in Tunie's name ? and got his own card on the account by falsely listing himself as her husband ? and wrote checks to himself from her accounts without her permission.

"I stole over $1.4 million from Ms. Tunie Generet by converting funds from her (business accounts) to my personal use," he said, using the actress' married name. Tunie, who plays medical examiner Melinda Warner on the NBC series, is married to jazz singer Gregory Generet.

Cilibrasi also admitted he stole $75,000 from the Kansas City Symphony's Michael Stern by pocketing checks he told Stern to write to cover some federal and Missouri state taxes. Stern was hit with tax penalties because the money never got to authorities, Cilibrasi said.

The accountant also acknowledged opening a credit-card account in the name of another client, screenwriter Janet Roach. Her credits include 1985's "Prizzi's Honor," starring Jack Nicholson and Kathleen Turner.

Cilibrasi used some of the proceeds of his thefts to back such shows as "Legally Blonde: The Musical" and the Tony Award-winning "Spring Awakening," and films including the Tunie-directed "See You In September," the Manhattan District Attorney's office said when the case was unveiled last December.

The accountant also used some of the ill-gotten cash to vacation in Italy, Puerto Rico and Los Angeles, and to hire a writer for a script about Bannerman Castle, an elaborate building on an island in the Hudson River, prosecutors said.

Representatives for Tunie and Stern didn't immediately return calls Thursday. Roach didn't immediately respond to an email message.

Cilibrasi declined to comment as he left court.

"He accepts responsibility and wants to move on with his life," his lawyer, Gerald Shargel, said later.

___

Follow Jennifer Peltz at http://twitter.com/jennpeltz

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111110/ap_en_tv/us_people_tunie_swindled

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Thursday, November 10, 2011

German-Afghan charged with al-Qaida membership (AP)

BERLIN ? A German-Afghan man whose information led to terrorism warnings across Europe last year has been charged with being a member of al-Qaida, federal prosecutors said Thursday.

Ahmad Wali Siddiqui was captured by U.S. troops in Afghanistan in July 2010 and while in custody provided details on alleged plots linked to the terror network that supposedly targeted European cities. No attacks materialized.

Federal prosecutors' spokesman Marcus Koehler said Thursday that his office had charged the 37-year-old, identified only as Ahmad Wali S. in accordance with German privacy laws, with membership in the extremist Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and al-Qaida on Nov. 2.

Siddiqui is accused of training with both groups in Pakistan in the border region with Afghanistan in 2009 and 2010 with the aim of taking part in violent jihad, or holy war, Koehler said in a statement. Reached by phone, Koehler said he could not elaborate beyond the release.

At an IMU camp, Siddiqui underwent general military training and helped produce a German-language propaganda film, Koehler said. In the summer of 2009 he moved to an al-Qaida training area where he learned how to use heavy weapons, including anti-tank weapons and mortars.

In June 2010, a "high ranking al-Qaida member" tasked Siddiqui to return to Germany to become part of a European network of the terrorist organization, the statement said.

"The network was supposed to secure financial support for the organization but at the same time be ready for other, not yet concrete, orders from the al-Qaida leadership," Koehler said in the statement.

He slipped across the border into Afghanistan to return from there to Germany, but was captured by American troops in Kabul before he could leave the country, Koehler said.

While in American custody, intelligence sources have said he provided interrogators details of an early stage terrorist plot in Europe last year, which led the U.S. and others to issue a travel alert for Europe.

He was turned over to German authorities in April. No date has yet been set for his trial to be held in Koblenz, near where he was brought in to Germany at the U.S. Air Force's Ramstein Air Base.

Before going to Pakistan, Siddiqui and several other suspects met at Hamburg's al-Quds mosque, the prayer house that had served as gathering point for some of the Sept. 11 attackers before they moved to the United States to attend flight schools in 2000, German intelligence officials have said. Authorities shut down the mosque last year.

Intelligence officials also said Siddiqui was a friend of Mounir el Motassadeq, who was convicted by a German court in 2006 of being an accessory to the murder of the 246 passengers and crew on the four jetliners used in the Sept 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, who also frequented the al-Quds mosque.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111110/ap_on_re_eu/eu_germany_afghanistan_terror_suspect

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Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Russia issues stark warning against Iran attack

Russia and Iran warned the West against a military strike on the Islamic Republic Monday, saying an attack targeting its nuclear program would lead to civilian casualties and create new threats to global security.

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The separate remarks by foreign ministers Sergei Lavrov of Russia and Ali Akbar Salehi of Iran coincided with speculation about a potential Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear sites ahead of the release of a U.N. watchdog report expected to cast more light on suspected military aspects to Iran's nuclear activity.

"This would be a very serious mistake fraught with unpredictable consequences," Lavrov told a news conference in Moscow when asked about reports that Israel was preparing for a possible pre-emptive military strike.

In St. Petersburg, Russia, Salehi said Iran "condemns any threat of military attack on independent states."

Salehi spoke alongside Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and other ministers from nations in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a regional grouping dominated by Russia and China in which Iran has observer status.

Germany's Foreign Ministry also rejected military action against Iran, suggesting that the dispute should be resolved through diplomatic pressure instead. "This continues to be the key way to move forward in dealing with this threat to regional and international security," a spokesman said.

Foreign assistance
New disclosures in the IAEA report provide details on an apparent secret research program that was more ambitious, more organized and more successful than commonly suspected, The Washington Post said.

The paper said the report's findings provide new details on the role played by a former Soviet weapons scientist who allegedly tutored Iranians on high-precision detonators of the kind used to trigger a nuclear chain reaction.

Technology linked to Pakistani and North Korean experts also helped Iran advance its capabilities, the officials and experts told the paper.

The report says the intelligence also supports concerns that Iran continued to conduct weapons-related nuclear research after 2003, when U.S. intelligence agencies believed Iran halted the research in response to international pressure.

"The program never really stopped," David Albright, a former IAEA official who reviewed the agency's findings, told the paper.

"After 2003, money was made available for research in areas that sure look like nuclear weapons work but were hidden within civilian institutions," Albright told the paper.

Western powers believe Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear energy program.

Tehran denies wanting atom bombs, saying it is enriching uranium only to power reactors for electricity generation.

Story: Iran's Ahmadinejad defiant as U.S. raises heat: paper

The United States, the European Union and their allies have imposed economic sanctions on Tehran for refusing to halt its uranium enrichment program.

The United States and Israel have repeatedly hinted at the possible use of force against Iranian nuclear sites, eliciting threats of fierce retaliation from the Islamic Republic.

Based on the intelligence the U.N. agency has concluded that Iran "has sufficient information to design and produce a workable implosion nuclear device" using highly enriched uranium as its fissile core, Albright said.

Albright described some of the highlights at a private conference of intelligence professionals last week, the newspaper said, adding that it had obtained slides from the presentation and a summary of Albright's notes.

Russia and China grudgingly supported four previous rounds of sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program. But the two veto-wielding U.N. Security Council members have made clear any new sanctions would be an extremely tough sell.

Moscow is calling for a step-by-step process under which the existing sanctions would be eased in return for actions by Iran to dispel concerns over its nuclear program, which Tehran says is purely peaceful.

Russia, which has built Iran's first nuclear power station, has vociferously opposed any military action.

"There is no military solution to the Iranian nuclear problem as there is no military solution to any other problem in the modern world," said Lavrov.

"This is confirmed to us every day when we see how the problems of the conflicts around Iran are being resolved -- whether Iraq or Afghanistan or what is happening in other countries in the region. Military intervention only leads to many times more deaths and human suffering."

Reflecting regional fear of blowback from any attack on Iran, a government official in Kuwait said the Gulf state would not let its territory be used to launch attacks on any of its neighbors. Kuwait was a launchpad for the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and lies a short distance from Iran across the Gulf.

Salehi echoed Lavrov's words hours later.

"Past experience has shown that willful, unilateral military actions by certain countries have led to instability, to the murder of innocent people and to the emergence of new threats to the world," he said at the SCO meeting.

Israeli media have been rife with talk that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is working to secure cabinet consensus for an attack on Iranian nuclear installations.

In Washington, Pentagon spokesman George Little said the United States remained focused on using diplomatic and economic levers to pressure Iran.

Asked whether he believed Israel would give the United States advance notice in the event of military action against Iran, Little said: "It would always of course be preferable on a matter as grave as this to work closely with the Israelis."

A military strike would likely provoke Tehran into hugely disruptive retaliatory measures in the Gulf that would sever shipping routes and disrupt the flow of oil and gas to export markets, political analysts believe.

It would sour ties between the West and Russia, where Putin is expected to return to the presidency in 2012.

Senior Russian security officials accept that the West has legitimate concerns about Iran's nuclear program. But Putin has said several times in the past that there was no clear evidence that Iran is trying to develop a nuclear bomb

Reuters contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45187774/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/

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Michele Bachmann Slams Herman Cain For Inconsistencies, Avoids Talk Of Sexual Harassment Scandal

CBS News:

Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann says she won't comment on rival candidate Herman Cain's sexual harassment scandal, but criticized him in a radio interview for flip flopping on a host of policy issues.

Read the whole story: CBS News

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/06/michele-bachmann-herman-cain_n_1078535.html

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Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Analysis: EU-prescribed coalition gives Greece short-term relief (Reuters)

ATHENS (Reuters) ? The European Union stepped in to force Greece's political parties into a coalition that will save the country from immediate default but the bickering that marked the negotiations bodes ill for Greece's place in the euro zone.

The deal on the new coalition, to be fleshed out on Monday, still lacks an agreed prime minister and a clear mandate but will allow Greece to collect an international loan installment it needs before it runs out of cash in December.

While some analysts breathed a sigh of relief, most doubted a coalition of factious parties would will be able to push through the deep reforms, unpopular salary cuts and tax measures Greece needs to stay on an EU/IMF lifeline for long.

"These are 'baby steps' that are good on the surface, but cannot lead to a solution that avoids a default," said Bob Andres, chief investment officer at Merion Wealth Partners LLC. "I don't think it will have a material impact on the final solution."

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou will discuss on Monday with main conservative New Democracy opposition leader Antonis Samaras who they will appoint as premier, with non-political personalities, such as former European Central Bank vice-president Lucas Papademos as one of the potential candidates.

Their aides will hammer out how it will function before calling snap election. The two sided tentatively agreed to hold them on February 19.

"If all goes well, we will have a new government, with a vote of confidence, within the week," government spokesman Ilias Mossialos said.

Its immediate tasks would be to secure the next, 8 billion euro tranche within weeks, follow up on steps agreed with the IMF/EU/ECB "troika" in the second bailout plan, such as submit and approve the 2012 budget before the end of November.

BYZANTINE BRINKMANSHIP

The way Greek politicians reached this tentative deal is ominous for the months to come.

On October 31, Papandreou called for a referendum on a second 130 billion euro bailout Athens needs to avoid default, sending shockwaves across the globe, unsettling markets, angering EU partners and average Greeks alike.

"He tripped on his sword," said an aide on condition of anonymity. "He truly believed Greeks would vote yes and that the opposition would be forced to back the bailout plan."

His number two, Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos, a party rival appointed in a June reshuffle, had not been informed and was shocked. He initially backed the plan but came out against it after a meeting with angry EU leaders in Cannes.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy warned Papandreou he was risking not only default but an exit from the euro. Pushed by a public angry with two years of austerity and perceived lack of social justice, PASOK deputies rebelled.

New Democracy, long opposed to the bailout plan it said stifled growth, demanded Papandreou's resignation and a short-lived, non-political government to organize elections in weeks.

Under mounting pressure, Papandreou agreed with his ministers to step down and form a coalition in exchange for support in a confidence vote, allowing him a graceful exit.

But ideological differences, chronic mistrust and bargaining over posts in the new "national unity" government, prevented progress, officials said.

"There were problems from the first moment. New Democracy rejected the two negotiators the socialists wanted to send to make the deal," said a government official who requested anonymity.

With the potential coalition with New Democracy at risk and snap elections approaching fast, Venizelos, a party heavyweight who controls many deputies, reached out to smaller parties, in a move threatening to exclude New Democracy from the game.

This effectively brought Samaras back to negotiating table, under pressure from some of his own deputies threatening defection if New Democracy was left in the cold. But he still insisted Papandreou keeps his pledge to resign before a deal could be even be discussed.

"They are all behaving like they don't realize enormity of the danger," wrote commentator Antonis Karakousis in To Vima on Sunday. "Most are looking foolishly toward a future that does not exist for any of them."

EU WEIGHS IN

EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn on Sunday warned Greece it had 24 hours to form a government that would honor its pledges or face the prospect of a euro exit.

"We need a convincing report on this by Finance Minister (Evangelos) Venizelos tomorrow in the Eurogroup," Rehn told Reuters in a telephone interview. The 17 euro zone finance ministers meet in Brussels on Monday evening.

On this, he echoed Greek public opinion. Just hours later political leaders presented the first sketch of an agreement.

An ALCO poll on Saturday showed 52 percent of those asked favored a coalition compared to 36 percent who wanted snap polls. About 80 percent said the referendum was a wrong move.

Venizelos was seen as most capable of leading PASOK by 34 percent of party voters compared to 10 percent for Papandreou, once most popular but now ranking third behind is Health Minister Andreas Loverdos who drew 12 percent.

Venizelos is likely to stay as finance minister and even as one of two deputy prime ministers, the second to be proposed by New Democracy. If the agreed premier is a technocrat like Papademos, the two would effectively rule in an uneasy and short-lived marriage of opposites.

"I'm afraid the new government will very soon turn out to be problematic," said Stefanos Manos, a former finance minister with New Democracy told Reuters.

"The new prime minister will be under guardianship and will not give the impression that he is in charge. Everyone will be looking to the two party leaders who will be running things behind the scenes," he added. "The civil service wont implement any decision and everyone will be waiting for the election."

Down the road things are even murkier. With polls showing no party winning an outright majority, an election would most likely plunge Greece into more Byzantine negotiations, further risking its financial survival and euro membership.

One thing analysts are unanimous on is that Papandreou is out of the political picture, even if he stays on as party leader. He grappled for two years with a crisis that was not of his making but proved beyond his government's capacity.

The son and grandson of famous Greek prime ministers, Papandreou's last speech in parliament was a swan song, recalling the ups and downs of his career and answering critics who accuse him of inheriting the socialist party.

"From my grandfather Georgios Papandreou I inherited only a watch and from my father Andreas Papandreou only his name, nothing else," he said. "I have fought an unprecedented battle to save the country."

(Additional reporting by Harry Papachristou and Americas Economics Markets Desk)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111107/wl_nm/us_greece_crisis

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Monday, November 7, 2011

Facebook -Like Portal Helps Teens with Crohn's Collaborate on Medical Research

Advances | Health Cover Image: November 2011 Scientific American MagazineSee Inside

A team of pediatricians and computer scientists is developing a social network that turns doctors and patients into research collaborators


Image: Illustrations by Thomas Fuchs

Despite medical advances, the treatment of many chronic diseases remains haphazard and inconsistent. Teenagers with Crohn?s disease, a painful digestive disorder often diagnosed in adolescence, for example, sometimes get conflicting information regarding medications, diet modifications and alternative therapies. To help improve the care these patients receive, a team of pediatricians and computer scientists is developing a new type of social network that turns doctors and patients into research collaborators.

Here is how it works: With each therapy or treatment modification, doctor and patient participate in a mini clinical trial. The patient records symptoms through daily reports, filed via text message or the Internet. The doctor uses that information to make immediate decisions. Should the dosage of medication be changed? Is the new diet helping to alleviate symptoms? And the data from those individual experiments are then deposited in a Web bank, where they can be aggregated with other patient data, from similar experiments, to further the understanding of the condition in question. In early tests of this process, doctors were able to increase the rate of remission from 55 to 78 percent without adding any new medications to their arsenal. ?The idea is to make care continuous and to collect real-time data that will change our understanding and treatment of [Crohn?s],? says Peter Margolis of Cincinnati Children?s Hospital Medical Center, a co-founder of the new portal, the Collaborative Chronic Care Network.

The network, known as C3N, launched earlier this year at some 30 institutions around the country. For now it focuses on pediatric Crohn?s, but it could grow to include other conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, psoriasis and some cancers. The site?s founders believe C3N will also provide a new platform for clinical research, one that is significantly less profit-driven. ?Because large-scale clinical trials are so expensive, we only ever really test the treatments that promise a big payoff,? says Ian Eslick, a Ph.D. candidate at the M.I.T. Media Lab and C3N?s chief Web architect. ?With C3N, we can scientifically test all the other things?probiotics, gluten-free diets, changes in iron intake?that people are already trying at home and that seem promising, even if they aren?t profitable.?

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=6a71dca28fa799d8891890859177e27b

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