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He's been hampered by injury problems at the start of the season but that hasn't stopped Daniel Sturridge trying to make children become healthy. The 25-year-old has become an ambassador of Sainsbury's Active Kids 2015 campaign alongside Paralympic gold medalists Ellie Simmonds and Jonnie Peacock. The initiative aims to inspire children to lead healthier lifestyles whether that be through sport or their diets. Daniel Sturridge has become an ambassador of Sainsbury's Active Kids 2015 campaign . Sturridge (centre right) joins Jonnie Peacock (centre left) and Ellie Simmonds (centre) as fellow ambassadors . The initiative aims to inspire children to lead healthier lifestyles whether that be through sport or their diets . Sainsbury's Active Kids programme has donated £150million worth of sports and cooking equipment since the scheme began in 2005, and now has over 53,000 schools and organisations registered. It's not the first time that supermarket brand and Sturridge have formed a partnership. Earlier in October, Sturridge posted a picture on Instagram of him at a Sainsbury's checkout with the message: 'Late night shop... What's everyone's fave food?' The supermarket was Sturridge's choice of night spot as the Liverpool striker, recovering from a thigh problem, stocked up on some healthy foods. Sturridge shared this image of his late-night shopping trip to Sainsbury's on Instagram earlier in October . Sturridge (right) has made only three appearances for Liverpool this season due to injury . Sturridge is currently recovering from a thigh injury he picked up while on international duty with England . Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers (right) is desperate for Sturridge to return to the first-team . Liverpool WITH Sturridge . Games: 3 . Goals scored by Sturridge: 1 . Goals scored by Liverpool: 6 . Goals against: 4 . Points: 6/9 . Liverpool WITHOUT Sturridge . Games: 6 . Goals scored by Liverpool: 7 . Goals against: 8 . Points: 8/18 . Sturridge hasn't featured for his club since August, making just three Premier League appearances before getting injured on England duty. In his absence the Anfield outfit have struggled domestically and in Europe with Reds boss Brendan Rodgers desperate for him to overcome his injury. Sturridge scored 22 Premier League goals for the Merseysiders last season and and Rodgers is keen to get the forward back in the team and scoring. 'Top players have such an influence on the team,' said Rodgers. 'When you are under the cosh, you know that you have strikers who can score out of nothing. 'When you have that as a team, it is a big weapon. Sturridge is one of them. That is where we aim to get with Daniel.' Despite missing the last two months of the season, the Liverpool boss is confident Sturridge will be firing on all cylinders when he makes his comeback. 'When he comes back into the team, you will see the confidence because of the movement and the dynamic. But he isn’t fit and he hasn’t been for a long time,' he added. Sturridge watched on from the stands as Liverpool struggled to score against Hull at Anfield on Saturday . | Paralympic gold medalists Ellie Simmonds and Jonnie Peacock are also ambassadors for the supermarket's campaign . Supermarket initiative is to inspire children to become healthier . Sturridge hasn't featured for the Reds since August due to a thigh injury . | aafdf3a5bd71126c9ad07d93285966dc04d40c85 |
By . Anna Hodgekiss . Michele Price, 47, was left in a coma after routine surgery to investigate pelvic pain went horribly wrong . A woman admitted to hospital for keyhole surgery was left fighting for life after doctors accidentally tore her bowel. Michele Price was admitted to the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham to have her pelvic pain investigated. The 47-year-old went home the same day but was rushed back to hospital early the next morning, suffering from severe abdominal pain and vomiting. A CT scan performed two days later revealed her bowel had been sliced open and fluid was leaking into the rest of her body. Further exploratory surgery then confirmed she had two holes in her bowel. Doctors removed a section of her intestines and flushed out as much as the infection as they could. But they were forced to leave her stomach open for two days in an attempt to avoid Ms Price needing a stoma bag fitted. The mother-of-two then required further surgery two days later to re-attach her bowel and have her stomach sewn up. But medics were forced to leave her in an induced coma for five days to help fight the infection which had caused her organs fail. Ms Price was eventually discharged from hospital two weeks later - but has been left with horrific scars all down her stomach. Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust has now apologised and Mrs Price's solictors have secured an admission of liability from the Trust and Secretary of State for Health, paving the way for a settlement to be reached. Ms Price, who lives in Long Eaton, Derbyshire, with her fiance Stephen Harcourt, 47, and daughter Leah Price, 14, said: 'My life has been turned upside down following my horrific ordeal. 'My original surgery was keyhole surgery which is designed to be minimally invasive and leave little, to no, scarring. 'It was meant to be a routine procedure I went into hospital for, but instead I was left fighting for my life. 'The scarring on my stomach is horrendous and I am incredibly self-conscious of it. 'I feel truly let down by staff as I suffered so many needless complications and my life has been devastated as a result.' After being discharged from hospital, Ms Price's hair fell out because stress and amount of medication she was on. Ms Price with fiance Stephen and daughter Leah. She says the trauma of the botched surgery made her hair fall out and forced her to give up work . 'It . was coming out in clumps, it was really a mess and looked like a . patchwork quilt - so in the end, I shaved it off and was forced to buy . wigs.' Ms Price was also forced to close down her cleaning business after her ordeal. She added: 'I am pleased that with the help of my legal team that . the Trust has finally made an admission of liability for what happened . to me. 'I . just hope that this paves the way to the conclusion of the legal . proceedings so that I can try to start to put my life back together.' Medical . law experts at Irwin Mitchell found a host of errors had been made during the surgery on August 9, 2011, which had led to the bowel perforating. It is claimed that staff failed to appreciate that a perforation was the likely cause of Ms Prices's symptoms - and did not perform an immediate CT scan on her readmission the next day. Following the initial keyhold procedure, she was also treated by junior doctors who failed to detect peritonitis, multi-organ failure, abscesses, scarring and an incisional hernia. Tests carried out when Ms Price was severely ill after surgery revealed her bowel had been sliced open and fluid was leaking into the rest of her body. She has been left with scars all down her stomach . Sarah Rowland, a specialist medical . lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, said: 'Michele suffered a truly horrendous . ordeal in hospital following what should have been a simple and routine . procedure with minimal recovery time. 'Instead she was left fighting for her life and needing further operations that have left her with extensive scarring - a permanent reminder of the horrific ordeal she has been through.' Dr Stephen Fowlie, Medical Director at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, said: 'We reiterate our apologies to Ms Price and her family for the shortcomings in our care in 2011. 'Although Ms Price was reviewed by specialist registrars or consultants on each of the three days between her initial and second operation, we accepted our external expert’s view that senior review should have been more frequent. This lesson was shared with all staff in the department. 'Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust has done considerable work in the last two years to improve recognition of deterioration in patients, and to speed-up escalation to senior doctors when it does occur.' | Michele Price, 47, had keyhole surgery to investigate pelvic pain . But began suffering severe abdominal pain and vomiting after the operation . Tests revealed her bowel had been sliced open and fluid was leaking out . Ended up in five-day coma and with horrific scarring on her stomach . Mother-of-two said: 'My life has been turned upside down by this ordeal' Hospital has now apologised, admitted liability and is facing legal action . WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT . | 247812f9453ea162946ddeb6a80e50d307ec6c97 |
(CNN) -- Colombia and the United States signed an agreement Friday that allows U.S. personnel to be stationed at seven military bases in the South American nation. The United States says it needs the bases to help in its fight against terrorists and narcotraffickers, especially since the closure a few months ago of a U.S. base in Ecuador. The United States maintains similar "forward operating locations" in El Salvador and Aruba-Curacao. Colombia's agreement to host the Americans has come under harsh criticism in Latin America, particularly from President Hugo Chavez in neighboring Venezuela. Chavez has likened the agreement to an act of war and accuses the United States of wanting to stage military personnel nearby to destabilize his leftist government. The U.S. forward operating location in Aruba-Curacao is off the northern coast of Venezuela. The United States linked Colombia's agreement to a trade pact the South American nation wants. Colombia also stands to gain from U.S. help in the nation's 45-year-old war against Marxist guerrillas known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, commonly called FARC. Colombian Foreign Minister Jaime Bermudez, Defense Minister Gabriel Silva and Interior and Justice Minister Fabio Valencia Cossio were joined by U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield in signing the document Friday in Bogota, the nation's capital. | U.S. military personnel may be stationed at seven Colombian bases . U.S. says agreement will help fight against traffickers, terrorists . Venezuelan leader has called agreement an act of war . Colombia wants U.S. aid in 45-year anti-guerrilla battle . | 290e6d84546d76de6295dabfd9c1a88011c7c6dd |
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (CNN) -- An estimated 10,000 Argentines marched on the historic Plaza de Mayo in the capital, Buenos Aires, on Wednesday to demand more anti-crime measures, reflecting a top priority among Argentines, according to recent polls. Graciela Lopez takes part in the march on Wednesday. Her 16-year-old son was killed by a drunk driver in 2007. There were other anti-crime marches throughout Argentina on Wednesday night, as well. At least three police officers have been killed in Buenos Aires in recent weeks, and other high-profile crimes have grabbed the nation's attention. An employee of Argentina's most famous TV talk-show host, Susana Gimenez, was killed last month. That prompted Gimenez to call for the return of the death penalty. The death penalty was outlawed in Argentina in 1984, a year after the country's military ended its seven-year dictatorship, during which some 30,000 people were killed. Organizers used the Internet to mobilize people, setting up a Web page asking Congress to declare a national security emergency, and creating a Facebook page for the march. More than 106,000 people signed up as "friends." Those gathered in the Plaza de Mayo -- many carrying photos of their dead loved ones -- asked their leaders to act against rising crime. "We need to scream loud, so our president can hear us. All social classes are being affected by this crime wave. There needs to be sanctions for those responsible for this insecurity," said Graciela Lopez, 43, whose 16-year-old son was killed by a drunk driver in 2007. A small-business owner who was robbed in November echoed Lopez's sentiments: . "The police patrol cars hardly ever pass by. We are surrounded by delinquents. Our kids can't even take the bus to school without being worried about being assaulted. We are here to ask the government to get aware of what is happening to us, and that our president finds an answer for this insecurity," said Liliana Peyrera, 41, who owns an ice cream shop in the Buenos Aires suburb of La Tablada. Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been criticized for not focusing enough on crime. Her justice minister has defended the government's efforts, saying Argentina has one of the lowest murder rates in South America. "The government -- from the president to the senators to the judges -- they need to comply and uphold the laws that exist. We don't need new laws; we need to prosecute people that break the law," said Jorge Quiroga, 62, a mechanic who attended the march with his wife. | Buenos Aires rally is largest of various anti-crime protests across Argentina . At least three police officers killed in recent weeks . Argentina's president has faced criticism for not doing enough to combat crime . | f1e1418523593e17e33a7607cdc6dd64d755893a |
It’s a chocoholic’s worst nightmare: a disease ravages cocoa crops, causing a worldwide chocolate shortage and the price of sweets to soar. But a steamy greenhouse near London is helping to ensure that cocoa crops around the world remain disease-free. The International Cocoa Quarantine Centre (ICQC) is nurturing quarantined cocoa plants so that they can be shared with cocoa-producing countries to produce new, more disease-resistant varieties. The International Cocoa Quarantine Centre (ICQC) is designed to nurture quarantined cocoa plants so that they can be shared with cocoa-producing countries to produce new, more disease resistant varieties. This image shows a researcher taking cocoa beans from an opened cocoa fruit inside the facility . Inside the ICQC, the plants thrive tropical conditions where the air is a balmy 23°C (73 °C). ‘Cocoa plants are generally quite difficult plants to grow,’ said Heather Lake, a technician at the newly-revamped centre, which is funded half by the British chocolate industry and half by the US government. ‘They don't like too much sunlight, they don't like too much shade. It's quite difficult to get the climate correct.’ Hosted by the University of Reading and situated in the village of Arborfield, west of London, the ICQC boasts 400 cocoa plant varieties, grown in 10,760 square feet (1,000 square metres) of greenhouse space. Cocoa plants are difficult to grow because they need the right mix of sunlight and shade. Here, horticultural technician Heather Lake checks the leaves of young cocoa plants for pests . A steamy greenhouse near London (pictured) is helping to ensure that cocoa crops around the world remain free of diseases to cope with our growing appetite for sweet treats and keep it affordable . At a time when changing tastes in emerging economies like China and India are fuelling global demand for chocolate(stock image), the centre acts as a vital resource for producer countries when pests or droughts strike crops . Chocolate drinks were made as early in 1,900BC. The Mokaya and pre-Olmec people of Mesoamerica first roasted and ground cocoa beans to make 'chocolate'. The Aztecs believed that cacao seeds were the gift of Quetzalcoatl, the God of wisdom, and the seeds had so much value they were used as a form of currency. The Latin name for the cocoa tree is Theobroma Cacao which means ‘Food of the Gods’. Originally prepared as a drink, chocolate was served as a bitter, frothy liquid and was often mixed with spices, wine or corn. It was believed to give the drinker strength and boost their libido. Sugar was first added to cocoa in the 16th century when chocolate became popular the form we now recognise. It was originally only eaten by the rich. Chocolate houses sprang up in London in the seventeenth century and were frequented by the upper classes - by 1700 there were 2,000 in the capital. By the 20th century, the sweet was popular with all classes and chocolate was considered a staple and featured in war ration packs. The UK has the seventh highest consumption of chocolate in the world. The average Briton eats 17.49lbs (8kg) of chocolate per year, according to The World Atlas of Chocolate, but Switzerland takes the top spot. A total of 40 per cent of chocolate is consumed in Europe. Its aim is to reduce the amount of diseases affecting cocoa plants by quarantining them before sharing them with different countries to produce new, more resistant varieties. Diseases such as Black Pod and Mirid can decimate valuable crops. Andrew Daymond, manager of the ICQC, told MailOnline that there are various fungal diseases of cocoa such as blackpod, which is found worldwide, witches broom disease in South America and frosty pod rot, which is found in Central America and parts of South America. 'These all spread by fungal spores. Another disease that it important in West Africa is Cocoa Swollen Shoot virus. This is spread by insect vectors.' Most of the efforts to increase cocoa supply are geared towards improving yields on existing farms rather than increasing the area cultivated. Breeding of improved varieties that have better resistance to pests and diseases and higher yield potential is one route to achieve this and at the same time improve farmer livelihoods. The plants in the greenhouse were grown from cuttings or seeds collected from disease-free crops in the wild, on expeditions to the tropics. At a time when changing tastes in emerging economies like China and India are fuelling global demand for chocolate, the centre acts as a vital resource for producer countries when pests or droughts strike crops. ‘That's where we come into play,’ said Dr Daymond, which was set up 30 years ago. ‘We are the main hub for international movements of cocoa plants.’ New plants are needed because almost three quarters of the world’s cocoa is grown in West Africa, despite originating from South America, according to the International Cocoa Organisation. Such a heavy concentration of production in one region - the Ivory Coast and Ghana alone represent 60 percent - makes it vulnerable to shocks. For example, the price of cocoa jumped to almost $3,400 (£2,202) a tonne in September, amid fears that the Ebola crisis in West Africa could affect cocoa supplies. Both Ivory Coast and Ghana have so far been spared by the outbreak, but Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia, which collectively produce 0.7 per cent of the world’s cocoa, saw their yields plummet when the disease struck. Cocoa prices later rebounded, and even rose 15 per cent overall, last year. There is also the potential threat to the industry from plant diseases, which in West Africa can mean up to one third of the annual harvest is lost. The plants in the greenhouse were grown from cuttings or seeds collected from disease-free crops in the wild, on expeditions to the tropics. Here, technician Heather Lake checks the plants for signs of disease, which are all hooked up to a watering system to ensure they thrive . Hosted by the University of Reading and situated in the village of Arborfield, west of London, the ICQC boasts 400 cocoa plant varieties, grown in 10,760 square feet of greenhouse space. An image showing on variety of cocoa, and a pod is pictured left, and right, a technician polinates buds from flowers on a cocoa plant . New plants are needed because almost three quarters of the world’s cocoa is grown in west Africa, making it more vulnerable to pests and disease, according to the International Cocoa Organisation. Here, a technician hand pollinates buds from flowers on a cocoa plant, to ensure the crop thrives . Dr Daymond explained: ‘In each cocoa-growing country, they face particular challenges to do with pest and diseases, low yield potential of planted materials, extreme weather events. ‘The basic objective of the project is to allow safe movement of cocoa plants from one part of the world to another.’ Because Britain has no endemic pests or diseases affecting cocoa, the centre can grow resistant varieties before dispatching them around the world. The current quarantine procedure involves experts looking for signs of disease over a two year period, but research is under way to speed up the process. Because Britain has no endemic pests or diseases affecting cocoa, the centre can grow resistant varieties before dispatching them around the world. More mature cocoa plants are shown . ‘When we do an export, we send the small branches off a tree…we then remove all the leaves and we just send a stick,’ Dr Daymond said. He explained that producer countries can then ‘establish a plant that is genetically identical to the plant that they received the cutting from’. The centre also researches the effects of climate change on cocoa crops and is looking at developing new varieties that would be more resistant to droughts or increased carbon dioxide levels, in a bid to meet the demand for chocolate. The current quarantine procedure involves experts looking for signs of disease over a two year period, but research is under way to speed up the process. Here, a cocoa fruit is removed from a plant . Experts at Kew Gardens are advising the coffee industry how to grow more resilient plants, amid fears that the Arabica variety will be wiped out by the end of the century. The Ethiopian bean - the world’s most popular type of coffee - is severely threatened by drought. With dry weather predicted to become more frequent in east Africa, Arabica plants could be eradicated in the wild by 2080, experts say. Experts at Kew Gardens are advising the coffee industry how to grow more resilient plants, amid fears that the Arabica variety will be wiped out by the end of the century. A stock image of arabica beans is shown . This is because those growing in coffee plantations are from limited genetic stock and are unlikely to have the flexibility required to cope with repeated dry spells and other threats, such as pests and diseases. Now horticulturists from the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew are finding alternative species and educating coffee giants. Professor Kathy Willis, head of science at Kew, said: ‘We’re finding alternative species and talking to Starbucks and Sainsbury’s and other big coffee importers and producers so that information flows through to big business. ‘By 2050-2080 there could be a 100 per cent reduction in Arabica coffee in the wild because of the dry, so we will need to move to the other 124 species of coffee.’ This is because those growing in coffee plantations are from limited genetic stock and are unlikely to have the flexibility required to cope with repeated dry spells and other threats, such as pests and diseases, which could potentially create a shortage of good coffee (a stock image is shown) She said Kew coffee research head Aaron Davis was looking in countries such as Madagascar for more resistant strains of coffee that can be grown with better climatic tolerance than Arabica, but lots of the varieties found there taste ‘horrible’. While there are almost 125 species of coffee, Arabica is the most popular by far and is considered the most important global commodity, after oil. Kew is setting up a new company in May called Kew Consultancy Services to sell commercially useful information. ‘We are focusing Kew’s science in those areas where we can truly make a unique impact on people’s lives, thanks to our unrivalled collection of specimens and the world-leading expertise of our evolutionary botanists, mycologists, taxonomists and systematists, Professor Willis said. Kew has cut 100 jobs in the last eight months - half from the science department - after a cut in Government funding. | The International Cocoa Quarantine Centre (ICQC) is based near London . Steamy greenhouse mimics a tropical climate so cocoa crops thrive . Cocoa plants are grown that can be shared with cocoa-producing countries . This practice produces new, more disease resistant varieties . Work is important in creating a steady supply of cocoa, which makes sure the price of chocolate doesn't soar and crops meet demand . | 5c89844ee31a689c4051a9642b824923bb9e6b53 |
By . Chris Brooke . PUBLISHED: . 21:03 EST, 5 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 04:44 EST, 6 December 2012 . Guests are promised ‘unforgettable days and pleasant surprises’ in a four-star hotel combining ‘impressive luxury and elegance.’ But for more than 400 British holidaymakers, staying at the Royal Park Hotel in the Bulgarian resort of Elenite was a nightmare. Dirty conditions and appalling food hygiene proved a dangerous combination, with numerous families suffering illness and being struck down by a vomiting bug. Compensation: First Choice yesterday paid out £500,000 to be shared by 281 customers who stayed at the Royal Park Hotel in Bulgaria . Yesterday 281 holidaymakers who stayed at the hotel four years ago won a settlement of more than £500,000 from tour operator First Choice after suing the holiday company. It follows an earlier £200,000 payment to nearly 100 holidaymakers who suffered a similar fate when they stayed between 2004 and 2007 through the same holiday firm. Many of the unlucky tourists were so badly hit with gastric illness they continue to suffer from symptoms four years later. Guests at the ‘hotel from hell’ complained of flies buzzing around the food, inadequately cooked chicken, dirty crockery and cutlery in the restaurant, rude staff and unhelpful tour reps. Out of almost 300 people to receive the latest compensation payout more than 30 were so ill they required hospital treatment. 'Holiday from hell': The holidaymakers stayed at the Royal Park Hotel in Elenite, Bulgaria, four years ago (Stock image of rural Bulgarian beach) Despite the same complaints being repeated month after month and year after year, nothing was apparently done to improve conditions. A number of the families had booked trips for occasions such as wedding anniversaries and honeymoons. First Choice denied responsibility for the guests’ sickness but agreed the six-figure settlement shortly before a trial date was due to be fixed. The 281 guests all stayed at the Royal Park between June and October 2008. First Choice refused to comment yesterday. | Tourists stayed at the Royal Park Hotel in Elenite, Bulgaria, four years ago . 281 holidaymakers yesterday won a settlement of more than £500,000 from tour operator First Choice . Comes after 100 customers who suffered a similar fate when they stayed at the hotel between 2004 and 2007 were awarded £200,000 . | 3db357d3ab0bfa02283f777d7eaba42ac69d4c37 |
By . Associated Press Reporter and Reuters . PUBLISHED: . 17:48 EST, 6 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:49 EST, 6 November 2013 . Starbucks has announced plans to hire at least 10,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years. The Seattle-based coffee company is developing a system dedicated to matching the skills of veterans and military spouses with jobs throughout its organization. It has nearly 200,000 employees worldwide. ‘This demographic represents one of the most underutilized talent pools in our country,’ said former U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, now a Starbucks director. The Seattle-based coffee company is developing a system dedicated to matching the skills of veterans and military spouses with jobs throughout its organization . The announcement, which comes ahead of the U.S. Veterans Day holiday on November 11, is part of Starbucks' new effort aims to expand and strengthen its existing mentoring program through the Armed Forces Network. ‘This is not only about hiring baristas,’ Chief Executive Howard Schultz told Reuters. Starbucks is seeking individuals with experience in everything from leading teams to building and managing complex, global supply chains, Schultz said. As the company expands globally and gets coffee and tea from around the globe, veterans offer international experience and foreign language skills, Gates added. The company said it is particularly keen on veterans because they offer international experience and foreign language skills and the company is . expanding globally . ‘They bring an understanding of other cultures and they're accustomed to working with diverse and international partners,’ Gates said. it will have specialized recruiters to match the unique skills of veterans and their spouses with company jobs. Starbucks, which has about 20,000 locations around the world, also says it will designate five cafes in military communities where a portion of each transaction is donated to Operations GoodJobs and Vested in Vets, non-profits that help veterans re-enter the workforce . There . is a growing trend amongst largest American companies to hire more . vets, at the same time as the military is beginning a 30 percent force . reduction over the next four years. More than a quarter million . service members will exit the military in 2014. The concern is that many . will have a hard time finding work. Starbucks are following the likes of Wal-Mart, which earlier this . year said it planned to hire more . than 100,000 veterans over the next five years. Microsoft has investing $1 . million into its Software and Systems Academy which has put 23 vets on . an intensive, 16-week course. When they finish next month, they’ll all . get hired by either Microsoft or one of its contractors, earning as much . as $100,000. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, post 9/11 . veterans have an unemployment rate of 10.1 percent. That’s nearly three . percent higher than the overall unemployment rate for the U.S. and the . Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America group says it’s even higher. A . recent survey of members found 16 percent jobless. And of that group, 45 . percent had been out of work for at least a year. Not only about hiring baristas: Chief Executive Howard Schultz claims that the company has a host of different roles available for vets . | The company is seeking individuals with experience in everything from leading teams to building and managing complex, global supply chains . The company joins the likes of Microsoft and Wal-Mart in announcing schemes to recruit vets . 250,000 soldiers will leave the army next year as the first part of a four year plan to reduce numbers by 30percent . | 53b7c65b8741dd682ec9065038bbcf342e5489c2 |
Former Labour spin doctor Damian McBride was forced to resign for smearing opposition MPs while working for Gordon Brown . Ed Miliband was always the first down the pub for a drink and a gossip but now spends his time ‘walking round Hampstead Heath in a suit approaching people like a Mormon’, a disgraced former colleague has claimed. Damian McBride, Gordon Brown’s former spin doctor, said the Labour leader - a 'white wine man' - was ‘very sociable’ and the one to say: ‘Right, down to the bar’. But Mr McBride, who was forced to resign for smearing Tory MPs while working for Mr Brown, said Mr Miliband now had far too many people around him ‘saying he should do this or do that’ which was stopping him from being himself. Mr McBride said one of the Labour leader’s greatest assets was that he was normal but was making ‘ludicrous’ decisions which were harming his chances of making it to Number 10. The former Downing Street aide, speaking to Fubar radio, also criticised Mr Miliband’s conference speech – accusing him of forgetting to mention the deficit because he believes it’s Ed Balls’ responsibility. He also hit out at the ‘unnecessary’ anecdotes which Mr Miliband littered through his address about meeting ordinary people. Mr McBride said: ‘I didn’t think it was his best week.’ He said he should have come out and said: ‘Look it is my programme for government, this is what I want’. But he said Mr Miliband got ‘muddled up with all this stuff about wandering around Hampstead Heath and Primrose Hill and meeting people’. He added: ‘That was just unnecessary.’ He said the Labour leader was much more normal than he came across, adding: ‘I tell you what he doesn’t show that side of himself.’ Mr McBride added that this was ‘the best, almost the great thing, about him.’ He said: ‘Ed Miliband’s a fantastic gossip, he is one of those people always wanting to know which civil servants were going out which civil servants, and if someone had had a break up and, you know, what happened and you know, was so and so cheating on so and so. ‘He was interested in people and a very funny guy; a very dry wit and you don’t see that at all. That doesn’t come a cross and I think he needs to do more.’ Asked if he had ever seen Mr Miliband drunk, Mr McBride said: ‘Probably not drunk, I think he handles his drink quite well.’ But he said on one foreign trip with Gordon Brown ‘Ed was the man in charge deciding what we were all doing and every night he was the person saying, “right down to the bar at seven o’clock” and choosing where we would go to for dinner and that sort of thing’. He added: ‘He is very sociable.’ Mr McBride said the Labour leader and his shadow chancellor Ed Balls were ‘two lively guys and they were very close at that time’. But he said that Mr Miliband had changed after his spin doctors had got hold of him. He said: ‘The only time I met Ed Miliband in the last five years was wondering around a park. ‘He was out pushing his daughter in a pram with his wife. ‘I was coming up to this guy and I thought, you want to be the Prime Minister and you are wearing a light orange T-shirt and some luminous pink shorts and I just wanted to say to him, “You have got to start dressing better if you are going out in public”. ‘I think he now walks around Hampstead Heath in a suit approaching people like a Mormon asking what they think about our country’s future.’ Mr Miliband and his shadow chancellor Ed Balls were ‘two lively guys and they were very close’ when they worked for Gordon Brown at the Treasury . Mr McBride said the Labour’s leader’s conference speech gaffe, when he forgot to mention the deficit, was ‘a revealing slip’. He said: ‘As far as he is concerned the deficit is Ed Balls problem. He think Ed Balls has to deal with that.’ Mr McBride added that the Labour leader also feels ‘uncomfortable with the question of immigration’. ‘As the son of immigrants he feels positive about immigration and feels uncomfortable with aping the Nigel Farage rhetoric,’ he said. But Mr McBride said the Labour leader needed to ditch his gang of spin doctors. He said: ‘He has too many people around him saying he should do this or do that. ‘When Tony Blair was about to become Prime Minister, he had one person around him – Alistair Campbell. In the days before Gordon Brown became Prmie Minister, that was my job. Ed Milliband has literally a dozen people advising him on the Press and that is too many. ‘You get pulled in all different directions. That leads to ludicrous things like The Sun embarrassing him because he didn’t wear this wristband doing Help For heroes.’ * Mr Miliband made the comments on ‘Latch and Halina's Weekend Hangover Show’ on Fubar Radio, which airs tomorrow morning between 10am and 12pm. It is available on listen again afterwards. | Mr McBride worked with the Labour leader under former PM Gordon Brown . But the pair no longer speak after he resigned for smearing Tory MPs . He reveals how Mr Miliband was 'very sociable' - up for a drink and a laugh . But he says he has surrounded himself with too many spin doctors . Slams his conference anecdotes about meeting ordinary people in the park . Says he was normal but now 'walks around Hampstead Heath in a suit' | e17fdca6b524a18eb4def194487c61ed5f3f0727 |
By . Nick Pisa . PUBLISHED: . 04:50 EST, 31 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 04:52 EST, 31 May 2013 . Angry: Mario Balotelli at training this week. He has furiously denied a Mafia informant's claims that he had sold drugs to an addict 'as a joke' Footballer Mario Balotelli has furiously denied a Mafia informant's claims that he had sold drugs to an addict 'as a joke.' Balotelli, 22, was drawn into controversy after the supergrass gave evidence at a Mob money laundering trial. Former gangster Armando De Rosa claimed the player had sold drugs as 'a joke' while in the company of senior gangsters. But in a furious denial on Twitter Balotelli said: 'Ah..so now I'm a drug dealer. First I was a shag...Then maybe I took it up the a...You should be ashamed. You are using my name just to publicise yourselve' he wrote in a dig to prosecutors involved in the case. Balotelli posted his response minutes after TV news reports emerged of De Rosa's claims during a trial in Naples, the heart land of the local Mafia known as the Camorra. De Rosa had told the court: 'A friend called and said 'Would you like to see Balotelli' who was in Scampia (area of Naples). I thought it was a joke but he asked me to come and see him at a syringe exchange he had. 'Balotelli was there with members of the Russo and Amato-Pagano clams. 'Among them was a lad who was a dealer, he had a bag with doses of cocaine and heroin. I remember that Balotelli watched as a few deals took place. Then for a joke he asked if he could do a sale. 'So he handed a dose to the next client. I remember asking him if he had recognised Balotelli but he didn't know what was happening or believe me.' Balotelli's tweet was later removed from . his account with Italian media reporting his new club AC Milan, where . he moved to from Manchester City earlier this year, ordered him to. Angry: In a furious denial on Twitter, Balotelli said: 'Ah..so now I'm a drug dealer. First I was a shag...Then maybe I took it up the a...You should be ashamed. You are using my name just to publicise yourselve.' He later deleted it . However Balotelli unleashed his anger yet again late last night on Twitter aiming his fury at a local TV station in Naples saying: 'Your newsroom should be closed down. Unless you apologise you will sweat the tears of my mother.' Balotelli's visit to Naples where he was shown round by mobsters is said to have taken place in 2011 and he has admitted being there but insisted he left when he realised he was in a 'dangerous area.' He has been questioned by prosecutors in connection with his visit but has never been charged with any offence or suspected of any wrongdoing. Battle: AC Milan's Mario Balotelli fights for the ball with Siena's Manuel Coppola during their Italian Serie A football match at Artemio Franchi stadium in Siena on May 19 . | Mario Balotelli, 22, furiously denied a Mafia informant's claims . Supergrass gave evidence at a Mob money laundering trial . Angrily denied the accusation on Twitter account - post was later deleted . | 57fea422e4d6b938f0ed92d4fdf6861b9ca1f529 |
By . Louise Boyle . PUBLISHED: . 12:28 EST, 27 August 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 13:37 EST, 27 August 2012 . The wife of the Minnesota State football coach accused of child pornography made an emotional statement today, saying that her husband is innocent and charges against him were 'ridiculous and baseless'. Melodee Hoffner said she hoped authorities would reconsider the charges against her husband after videos of their three children, aged nine, eight and five, dancing naked were found on his school cell phone by an IT worker. Todd Hoffner, of Eagle Lake, faces two felony counts related to child pornography after authorities said they found nude images of the 46-year-old’s children earlier this month. Emotional plea: Melodee Hoffner defended her husband today after the college football coach was accused of having child pornography on his cell phone in Minnesota . Mrs Hoffner, whose voice occasionally cracked during her statement, said the videos were innocent and that she and her husband were 'in shock' when he was arrested. 'My family does what every family does - we take videos and pictures of our kids in all their craziness. My husband would not ever abuse our children or any other child,' Mrs Hoffner said, according to the Star Tribune. She is a licensed school counselor and said she knows the signs of children who have been abused. The mother-of-three said the charges were 'ridiculous and baseless'. Mrs Hoffner said defiantly that the couple's three children were healthy and well-adjusted and had normal relationships with their parents, teachers and friends. Todd Hoffner had taken his cell phone to the college IT department on August 10 to be fixed when an employee found the allegedly inappropriate recordings. The coach was free on $40,000 bail and is on administrative leave from his job as head football coach at Minnesota State University. Suspicions: Head football coach Todd Hoffner, 46, was arrested on allegations that he had possessed and produced child pornography . He was arrested on August 21 on suspicion of owning and producing child pornography. Hoffner . was escorted off the football field and has been on . leave from his coaching position since then. After an investigation and a search of his home, he was arrested. Blue Earth County authorities continued to examine computer disks removed from the family home but have yet to find any other material of minors. A university investigation is pending, according to spokesman Dan Benson. 'The University's top priority is ensuring the safety and well-being of its students, program participants, and the community. 'The . University is not aware of any allegations affecting university . students or program participants,' Benson said in the statement. Assistant coach Aaron Keen told the Star Tribune: 'The whole situation comes as a shock and is still a shock.' He added that the players were 'responding well' since news surfaced. Search: Eagle Lake Police Chief Phil Wills walks into home of Minnesota State University football coach Todd Hoffner while assisting in the investigation . Hoffner is in his fifth year as Minnesota State's head football coach. He led the team to the playoffs in 2008 and 2009, and a share of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference title in 2011. He was named NSIC coach of the year in 2009 and was previously the offensive coordinator at the University of South Dakota. A spokeswoman at the university told the Mankato Free Press that Hoffner earns an annual salary of $101,000 along with fringe benefits worth $31,000. His contract was renewed on July 1 for four years. Two complaints have been filed against him since he has been with . the university, according to the spokeswoman. Details have not been disclosed. Controversy: Todd Hoffner, center, was arrested at his home after an investigation. He has been on leave from his coaching position since earlier this month . | Melodee Hoffner said she and her husband Todd were in 'shock' when he was arrested after naked videos of their children were found on his phone . Mrs Hoffner said: 'We take pictures and videos of our kids in all their craziness' The Minnesota State coach, 46, was escorted off the pitch during training . | 993ea37e81ff3129252b100b23f9a85430db8bf8 |
London, England (CNN) -- Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber has expressed an interest in buying London's famed Abbey Road Studios after music company EMI reportedly put the building where the Beatles recorded most of their albums up for sale. Lloyd Webber, the man behind musical hits "Phantom of the Opera" and "Cats," came forward following concerns from fans and music industry figures that the historic building would fall foul of property developers. "He is very interested in buying the studios," a spokesman for Lloyd Webber, who is one of the UK music industry's richest figures with an estimated worth of £750 million ($1,150 million), told CNN. EMI has slapped a for sale tag on Abbey Road as it looks to dig itself out of heavy debts following the music company's 2007 leveraged buyout by private equity operation Terra Firma, according to the Financial Times. The news has generated concerns from music industry figures including former Beatle Paul McCartney, but Lloyd Webber is the first to indicate willingness to open his check book. His spokesman added: "He first recorded there in 1967 with Tim Rice. Andrew has since recorded most of his musicals there, from 'Jesus Christ Superstar' to his new musical 'Love Never Dies.' "He thinks it is vital that the studios are saved for the future of the music industry in the UK. Abbey Road has such great facilities, with three major recording studios, and Andrew has probably brought more musicians to record there than anyone else, because it has the capacity to record large orchestral productions." Lloyd Webber's interest in the building follows an announcement from Britain's National Trust, a charity that safeguards many of the country's historic buildings, that it was considering whether involve itself. After opening up the issue to the public via the Internet, the charity, which already owns the childhood homes of Paul McCartney and fellow former Beatle John Lennon, received thousands of votes, plus Facebook and Twitter comments, urging it to act. "If we can help, we will step forward," National Trust director general Fiona Reynolds said, according to its Web site. Abbey Road Studios, located in the wealthy north west London suburb of St. John's Wood, have been a centerpiece of the UK recording industry since they were established in the 1930s. Making its name with classical recordings involving composer Edward Elgar, the studios gained worldwide fame through the Beatles, who named one of their albums "Abbey Road," featuring an iconic photo of the band crossing a road outside the building on its cover. With other bands -- including Pink Floyd, whose 1973 classic "Dark Side of the Moon" was recorded there, and Radiohead -- sustaining interest in the venue, it has become a Mecca for music fans who regularly daub tributes to their icons on its walls. | Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber says he is interested in buying studios . EMI had reportedly put studio up for said as it struggles with debt . Beatles, Pink Floyd and Radiohead all recorded at Abbey Road . | 43c3438654dfd4aaf015cfee73ac2b7de052cb0f |
The government-run health insurance exchanges have been open for business for 20 days. But a host of issues have plagued the highly anticipated launch, making it difficult for both consumers and insurance providers. "There's no sugarcoating it," President Barack Obama said from the Rose Garden on Monday. "The problem has been that the website that's supposed to make it easy to apply for and purchase the insurance is not working the way it should for everybody." What's not working . Error messages: HealthCare.gov is plagued with technical problems. The Obama administration hasn't completely released the cause or extent of the problems, likely because they haven't quite figured them out. But people in all but 14 states and the District of Columbia are having trouble applying for the exchanges because the website isn't allowing them to complete the process. "I put in my user name and password, it didn't recognize it," CNN's Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen reported Monday, saying that the website gave her error messages or said "page not found" or that the system was down. Obamacare open enrollment: Here's everything you need to know . The problems appear to have been worse for those who signed up in the first days the exchanges opened. Spinning icon: For others, the website is extremely slow. The spinning icon that indicates that the website is working, albeit slowly, is a huge frustration in the age of (relatively) fast connection speeds. Faulty information: It's not only consumers wanting to sign up for health insurance who are having trouble, but the insurance companies that provide coverage are experiencing difficulties with the exchanges, too. Insurance companies say the technical problems are causing the companies to receive both incomplete customer information and duplicate applications. Internet overload: The White House indicated that the problems are exacerbated because of the large number of people who have visited HealthCare.gov. Obama said 20 million have visited the site since the exchanges opened on October 1. While the President said he would not excuse the problem, he said half a million people have managed to apply. But it is unclear how many of them have made it all the way through the sign up process. While that's a large number, it's only a fraction of the 48 million uninsured and 20 million who have visited HealthCare.gov. Still, as some have been able to sign up, it's not all bad: . Have you had trouble signing up? Tell us your experience . What's working . State-run exchanges: Fourteen states and the District of Columbia are running their own exchanges. Those websites are working much better. Many of the states refused to implement their own exchanges in large part because of ideological opposition to the health care law, forcing the federal government to fill the void. 1-800-318-2596: That's the number to call if you want to sign up for health insurance by phone; by speaking to an actual person. It works. Obama said wait times are "less than a minute." Cohen confirmed that receiving help via phone was a cinch. "They're terrific. They're very helpful and they answer almost instantly," she said of the call operators. 5 things that have happened since Obamacare launched . Navigators: Recent polls suggest that the majority of people don't know much about the Affordable Care Act. A nonprofit set up to help people sign up for Obamcare, Enroll America, said they are seeing changes. Justin Nisly, spokesman for Enroll America, said they have nearly doubled the number, from 4,000 to 7,000, working to educate the uninsured about the exchanges and health insurance. Information: Before the exchanges opened, the cost and services provided were largely unknown. But both HealthCare.gov and the state-run exchange websites are providing detailed information about what people will get and how much it will cost. Time: While the exchanges opened on October 1, coverage doesn't begin until January 1, and the deadline for having coverage in place is March 1, so there's still time to sign up. Officials are recommending people who need to sign up do so by February 15 to ensure the coverage will take effect in time. | A host of issues have plagued the launch of Obamacare's insurance exchanges . President Obama says "there's no sugarcoating it." Problems include website error messages, faulty information, Internet overload . Bright spots include state-run exchanges, clarity on services . | 3cb129ff6323c6e455d2b7723a0da49859247484 |
(CNN) -- Germany's much-loved model train manufacturer, Maerklin, has filed for bankruptcy, leaving fans around the world wondering whether it's the last stop for the company's toy business. This Maerklin train has a video in the front so users get a driver's view. Maerklin has been building toy trains for nearly 150 years and its railroads made their way into countries as far away as Australia and New Zealand. The company said it applied for insolvency proceedings Wednesday after talks to secure credit from banks broke down. Despite intensive negotiations, the commercial banks did not extend their lines of credit, Maerklin said. "It is sad," shopper Frank Steen, 39, said at London's famous Hamleys toy store. "With fewer older brands around, all we're left with is Japanese plastic." Although Maerklin generated a turnover of around $165 million in 2008, it struggled to obtain a credit extension beyond January 31, it said. Despite financial difficulties, the company still planned to set up its stall Thursday at the Nuremberg Toy Fair. Railway devotees will have plenty to look forward to after Maerklin boss Dietmar Mundil promised to bring 400 new products to the show. | Maerklin toy train firm files for bankruptcy . Company says it failed to secure extension of credit lines from banks . Maerklin generated a turnover of around $165 million in 2008 . Company still plans to attend this week's Nuremberg Toy Fair . | a80f4e3f38cc8e0dc78706fde59b37d395890a56 |
(CNN) -- Five years ago, Robert Rogers was driving home with his family from a wedding when a flash flood took his wife and four children from him in an instant. Robert and Melissa Rogers with their four children before they died in August 2003. Rainfall from a torrential downpour swept the Rogers' minivan off a Kansas highway. As water filled the van, Rogers kicked out a window in a last-ditch effort to save his family. Instead, he and his wife, Melissa, and daughter, Makenah, were sucked out of the van. Hours later, the bodies of children Zachary, 5, Nicholas, 3, and Alenah, 1, still buckled in their car seats, were found inside the van. Rogers survived. Instead of falling into despair, he became a minister dedicated to honoring his family by preaching messages of hope in the face of adversity. "It was a huge choice of faith," Rogers told CNN. "It was a determination to live life to honor God, to honor my heavenly family, and to make something productive out of it and not just to wallow in my pity." Watch the story of the Rogers family tragedy » . Rogers' mission manifests itself in a variety of ways. In the past five years, he estimates he has told the story of his loss at least 400 times to more than 120,000 people. The message behind his story is to live life with no regrets by embracing your family and faith. "People have responded to me that they want to change the way they live their life. They want to have a personal relationship with God and they want to get right with their spouse and children," he said. In addition to his speaking tours, Rogers has established a ministry dedicated to serving orphans across the world. Rogers also traveled to Haiti and tsunami-ravaged parts of Asia to minister and deliver aid to orphans. Watch Rogers talk about his ministry » . His mission is to establish five orphanages in five continents to symbolize the five family members he lost. One, called Melissa's House, already exists in Russia, where eight orphan teens live with a married couple, and another is under construction in Rwanda. "We dedicated it in honor of Melissa because she loved being a mom and I hope she is a role model to these girls," Rogers said. Since that fateful day five years ago, Rogers has begun to heal. He is married with one child and another on the way. More than anything, he hopes his story will inspire others to live each day to its fullest. "We are not guaranteed the next five seconds," Rogers said. "Life is very fragile and I hope my stories and inspirations are compelling people to live that life of no regrets." CNN's Kyra Phillips contributed to this report . | Robert Rogers' wife and four children died in flash flood five years ago . Rogers chose not to "wallow in pity" and became a minister with a message of hope . His mission is to establish five orphanages in five continents to honor his family . One named after his wife, Melissa, exists in Russia, another planned in Rwanda . | 7afbe903f1f7cdc1af509583649babf481d01729 |
By . Anna Edwards . PUBLISHED: . 14:07 EST, 10 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 14:07 EST, 10 May 2013 . A restaurant-owner had his laptop stolen from his table as he enjoyed an al fresco lunch outside of his own eatery. Proprietor David Moore and a colleague were left open-mouthed after a thief casually strolled past them before snatching the Apple MacBook and then roaring off on a motorbike driven by a waiting accomplice. They had been lunching outside exclusive L'Autre Pied in Marylebone, London, and watched a presentation on the laptop, before leaving it sitting on the table as they talked. Mr Moore and his colleague were enjoying coffee as the thief strolled toward them . The brazen thief nimbly pinches the expensive laptop outside the Marylebone restaurant . Clutching his haul, the thief dashes off in seconds, as the unsuspecting pair continue to talk . CCTV caught the thief, who was clad in a motorcycle outfit, clutching the MacBook as he dashed away, with both Mr Moore and his colleague chasing after him. Mr Moore, 48, who also owns the Pied a Terre restaurant in Fitzrovia, told the Evening Standard: 'We were having coffee when this guy walks past and grabbed the laptop off the table. He was as cool as a cucumber. 'He ran off to an accomplice who was awaiting near-by on a scooter and they sped off. It was all over in a few seconds. 'We both reacted very quickly and ran after him but he was too quick.' Apple MacBook Pro versions begin at £999, while a MacBook Air costs fro £849. A Metropolitan Police spokesman . confirmed officers were called to reports of a theft in Blandford Street . at around 3.30pm last Friday, the Evening Standard reported. What the? The pair look on as the brazen crook flees the scene - carrying the Apple MacBook . The two men jump to their feet to give chase to the yob, who stole from outside Mr Moore's own restaurant . Despite pursuing the thief, the pair could not chase him. Police warn thieves look for easy opportunities to snatch goods . Snatch and grab thefts have rocketed in the past year. In January, figures showed thefts of mobile phones in London have soared by 64 per cent over the past three years, with 300 mobiles being stolen every day. Many of the thieves are youths on bikes or mopeds but others, often thefts from crowded bars, are organised by mainly Eastern European crime gangs. Nearly 10,000 phones were stolen in December last year alone. In December 2009 there were 5,915 offences and in December 2010, there were 8,078 offences committed. In January Scotland Yard launched an advertising campaign to warn Londoners of the risks of phone and jewellery snatches. One advert showing a mobile phone reads: 'I see easy cash so I run up to him and grab it from his hand'.Police wanted to stress that often thieves look for opportunities, rather than creating devious plans. Mr Moore is the founding director of Pied a Terre and has appeared on the BBC2 programme 'The Restaurant' as one of the 'Inspectors'. He opened his award-winning restaurant in 1991 with head chef Richard Neat who earned the restaurant two highly-prized Michelin stars. Sister restaurant L'Autre Pied opened in late 2007. | Apple MacBook stolen from outside exclusive L'Autre Pied in London . Owner David Moore was lunching with colleague when thief grabbed laptop . Thief escaped on motorbike driven by accomplice . | 0d238030c20fd943e9443614ea7f16ab4ebf37b1 |
Several Jamaican sprinters were banned for doping earlier this year and now a footballer from the Caribbean nation has been suspended. Jermaine Hue, a creative midfielder who has made more than 40 appearances for the national team, received a nine-month suspension after he tested positive for dexamethasone. But a stiffer penalty was given to the team doctor, Carlton Fraser. He was hit with a four-year punishment after "having administered" the corticosteroid, FIFA said in a statement on its website. The two were provisionally banned in August after Hue tested positive following Jamaica's World Cup qualifier at Honduras in June. Hue, 35, has spent most of his career with Jamaica's Harbour View but had brief stints with the Kansas City Wizards of the MLS and Sweden's Mjallby. According to a report in the Jamaica Observer in August, Fraser was a personal friend of the late Bob Marley and also treated the reggae great. The sanctions are a further blow to the 'Reggae Boyz' -- they sit last in their qualifying group with only two matches remaining. Former world-record holder in the 100 meters, Asafa Powell, and Sherone Simpson admitted to testing positive for banned substances in July, a month after double 200-meter Olympic gold medalist Veronica Campbell-Brown received a provisional ban. | Jamaican midfielder Jermaine Hue receives a nine-month ban for doping . But the doctor who administered the substance was suspended for four years by FIFA . Hue has made more than 40 appearances for the Jamaican national team . Jamaica sits last in its World Cup qualifying group with only two matches remaining . | 346bf048a1559f87358cb617b3bd2e23b727ce3d |
(CNN) -- It's just one thing after another for Richard and Mayumi Heene. They've caused such an uproar after last week's alleged balloon boy hoax that Lifetime won't air a re-run of their "Wife Swap" episode. The Heene family's "Wife Swap" episode has been pulled from Lifetime's programming schedule. Those who pay close attention to TV Guide would have noticed that the Heene family's first episode for the ABC reality show was scheduled to air on Lifetime on Thursday, October 29, at 2 p.m. ET. "It was on the schedule long before the incident," a Lifetime spokesperson said. The incident refers to the giant, homemade balloon that sailed over Colorado on Thursday, purportedly carrying 6-year-old Falcon Heene. The bubble burst when authorities discovered Falcon had been hiding in a box in the attic. During an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, the Heene's asked Falcon why he didn't come out as they searched for him, and the boy replied, "You guys said we did it for a show." That triggered an investigation that revealed the frightful incident was a hoax, police said. Richard and Mayumi Heene are now facing a number of local charges, and the Federal Aviation Administration has begun its own balloon boy investigation, officials said. As a result, Lifetime has decided to erase the family's "Wife Swap" past from the network. "Once we found out" [it was allegedly a hoax], the spokesperson said, "we decided to pull it off the air. At this time, we don't have any plans to air it in the near future." The episode depicted Karen Martel, whose husband runs a child-proofing business, as being shocked "as the Heene kids jump off banisters and run wild, and appalled by Richard's attitude to women," according to the description on ABC's Web site. "Wife Swap" asks its participants to switch places for two weeks. "Meanwhile, at the Martels'," the description continued, "Mayumi Heene sees safety gates everywhere and wonders how the family [has] fun. She asks the kids about their anxieties and confronts Jay about the climate of fear in his house." Lifetime plans on filling the time slot with a "Wife Swap" episode that features another family, but rest assured, the Heene's reality TV debut can still be found on YouTube. | Lifetime had scheduled a Heene "Wife Swap" episode for October 29 . It was scheduled long before the balloon boy incident, a spokesperson says . Now that hoax allegations have surfaced, network removes the episode . | d30e8d7275a337f2a8355bcac18e1110e590a3f8 |
An amazing set of pictures has given a new, rare glimpse into the lives of 1960s mining communities both in and out of the pits. The retro images show the working and social lives of the pit men proving that although the work was hard, they enjoyed lively 'out of hours' entertainment. The photos shine a light on the mining communities of Horden in County Durham and Workington in Cumbria, showing how the miners enjoyed their time off from the harsh conditions underground. Scroll down for video . Miners, who are covered in dust and soot, help each other to get clean in the showers after their shift at Horden Colliery in County Durham. Despite the hard work underground extracting the coal, the men seem to be in good spirits . Another two miners get changed out of their work clothes in one of the locker rooms at Horden Colliery. The image is part of a new collection shedding light on the day in the life of a 1960s coal miner . Men still wearing their safety hats and head lamps gather around to listen to the speaker at a National Coal Miners' Union meeting in Workington, Cumbria in 1963. The economy of the town of Workington was highly dependent on the coal industry during the 1960s . The rare images also show the miners outside of work, enjoying a drink at a local working men's club in Horden while listening to an entertainer, left, with others playing a game of dominoes, right . The pictures come from the 1960s at a time when coal mining was the lifeblood of many small towns. But they show that despite the difficult work, many embraced a community spirit with the miners and their families socialising in the back streets and working men's clubs. And amid the sombre and severe light, it shows the workers in good spirits relaxing and showering after a hard day's work. It even shows how many enjoyed a drink and entertainment in their local working men's club as well as playing dominoes and tending to their racing pigeons. Meanwhile their children can be seen happy playing in the narrow back streets of their miners terraced houses. The collection of photos by awarding winning photographer Patrick Ward will be on display at the National Coal Museum in West Yorkshire, until January 2015. Mr Ward began his photography career in the 1960s, working for many newspapers, magazines and journals. The new exhibition also coincides with the launch of his new book called 'Being English'. The book showcases a collection of Mr Ward's work and explores the eccentricities of life in England. A punter collects his winnings during a whippet racing event for the miners in Horden. Even though the miners worked together, many of them socialised together during the evenings, forming a close bond and community spirit . As well as dog racing, other miners spent their time enjoying pigeon racing. Here, one miner from Horden Colliery tends to his homing pigeons who are fluttering around their bird shed . Many of the miners families also socialised together, with many living side by side in miners' terraced houses. Left, boys playing in the back streets of Workington pose for a picture, while right, a teenager miner in Horden heads home after finishing his shift . Children happily playing and running in the narrow back streets of their miners terraced houses in Workington in 1963, while a horse and cart collects rubbish. The collection of photos showing life in the mining communities will be on display at the National Coal Museum . Two coal miners with their head lamps shining prepare to start their shift and get ready to enter the lift cage to go underground at Horden Colliery, County Durham in 1966. The miners endured harsh conditions working below ground extracting coal . Miners emerge from a lift cage after being taken down to start their mining shift at Horden Colliery, left. After their shift they can be seen chatting and smoking in the colliery's locker rooms before heading home, right . | Rare images give a glimpse of life inside and out of the pits in the mining communities of County Durham and Cumbria . Shows the miners relaxing after a hard day's work and their hobbies such as dominoes and tending to racing pigeons . Pictures were taken by photographer Patrick Ward with the collection set to go on show at the National Coal Museum . | 903a7b2a738ea2cfb0921b210f595e32a40f3056 |
A 16-year-old Nigerian girl who won weightlifting gold faces being stripped of her title after providing the first in-competition positive drugs test of the Commonwealth Games. Sir Craig Reedie, president of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), expressed his shock that an athlete as young as Chika Amalaha should test positive for banned substances. The teenager became the youngest female winner of a Commonwealth weightlifting title when she scooped gold in the 53kg class last Friday, but will be disqualified today if her ‘B’ sample results match those of her ‘A’ sample, which showed traces of a banned diuretic and masking agent. Doubt: Nigerian weightlifting gold medalist Chika Amalaha has failed a doping test at Commonwealth Games . Reedie said: ‘I am very disappointed that somebody as young as that appears to have committed an offence at a multi-sport event like the Commonwealth Games.’ If Amalaha is stripped of her gold medal, it is understood WADA will investigate how such a young athlete was given access to illegal substances. Her positive test also prompted questions about weightlifting’s legitimacy as a Commonwealth sport. The event has a history of drug-related incidents, while Nigeria was barred from the 2002 Games in Manchester after four athletes tested positive in 2001. But Mike Hooper, chief executive of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), said: ‘I think weightlifting is a fantastic sport and a strong Commonwealth and Olympic sport. ‘I think the issue here is about showing we have a robust anti-doping programme in place.’ Before: Amalaha (centre) celebrates winning women's weightlifting 53kg class gold . Controversial: Amalaha won the gold medal on Friday, setting a new Games records in her weight category . VIDEO Commonwealth Games - Day 5 review . | Chika Amalaha fails Commonwealth Games doping test . Nigerian weightlifter has been provisionally suspended from the Games . | 0ce399d97ea6eeb20f9892d088a62aaa0228c232 |
By . Lizzie Parry . PUBLISHED: . 14:32 EST, 13 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 04:36 EST, 14 January 2014 . Walkers discovered the 9ft boa constrictor lying on a footpath in Wrexham . Walkers stretching their legs on a Welsh footpath stumbled across a dead giant boa constrictor, dumped out in the cold. The 9ft snake was discovered on the walkway in Erddig Park, Wrexham on Saturday evening, prompting shocked passers by to share photographs via social networking sites. The pictures went viral, grabbing the attention of zoologist Chris Wright. The special care school teacher, who trained in zoology at Aberystwyth University, said he rushed straight to the scene to establish if the reptile was dead or alive, fearing it could pose a threat to small dogs and other wildlife in the area. Mr Wright, said: 'On Saturday night I had a phone call saying a large snake had been found and I saw the pictures on Twitter. 'Now usually when people talk about a big snake they just mean a large grass snake, but this is a 9ft long boa constrictor. 'I quickly needed to establish if it was still alive as it could still pose a risk to life for wildlife and small dogs although it would not have been any threat to humans. 'So I went out there at 9pm and found the snake, but it was dead.' Kevin Harvey from Wrexham, was walking down the country lane with his neighbour David Edwards when they stumbled across the snake. The 54-year-old said: 'It was incredibly long. It was easily as thick as my leg, and so, so heavy. 'We were so surprised to stumble across it and we poked it with a stick to see if it was alive.' Mr Wright, who is a specialist in reptiles and rescues tortoises, said the snake had died as a result of the col weather. Zoologist Chris Wright was alerted to the discovery after spotting pictures on Twitter. He said he rushed straight to the scene to ascertain whether the reptile was dead or alive, fearing it could pose a threat to small dogs and other wildlife . The snake is believed to have been dumped and died because of the cold weather. Mr Wright said: 'It is such a shame. She had either escaped, or more than likely had been cruelly dumped by someone' He said: 'The snake was a female and was an absolute beauty. I have no indication of age but she was quite well fed. 'It is such a shame. She had either escaped, or more than likely had been cruelly dumped by someone. 'It happens quite often unfortunately. It is most likely someone has dumped it and unfortunately it has been killed.' He said the snake has now been buried. Boa constrictors can reach up to 13ft in length and kill by crushing their victims . The boa constrictor is a species of large, non-poisonous snake. It is a member of the Boidae family and is found in the wild in North, Central and South America, as well as some islands in the Caribbean. They live for between 20 and 30 years, reach up to 13ft in length and can weigh up to 60lbs or 27kgs. Like their cousins, Anacondas, Boas are excellent swimmers but prefer to stay on dry land. In the wild they tend to live in hollow logs and mammals burrows. Their jaws are lined with small hooked teeth, for grabbing and holding their prey, while wrapping their muscular bodies around their victim, squeezing it until it suffocates. Boas will eat almost anything they can catch, including birds, monkeys and wild pigs. Their jaws can stretch to allow them to swallow their prey whole. Female boas incubate their eggs outside their bodies and can give birth to up to 60 babies during their lives. Some boa constrictors are hunted for their fine, ornate skin and as such, many of the species are endangered. | Pictures of giant snake found dead on popular Wrexham pathway go viral . Zoologist Chris Wright spotted the snaps and rushed to establish whether the reptile was dead or alive, fearing it could pose a threat to wildlife . He said the snake had died after being abandoned in the cold weather . | fd258fea9fdfef9a404168596a0114b7ff84a98b |
Las Vegas (CNN) -- Televisions are getting wider and thinner, their edges shrinking to make room for displays that pack in more and more pixels. But the real evolution of the TV set isn't taking place with the glossy hardware. It's happening inside. Major TV manufacturers, including Sharp, Sony, Samsung, LG and Panasonic, announced their latest television sets this week at the Consumer Electronics Show here. They all had variations on the same splashy hardware features that were previewed last year -- Ultra HD and OLED screens, more inches (60, 85, 110) -- but now they're closer to being available on consumer products. However, it's the smaller, tablet-inspired features that could end up being more enticing to average consumers. These include improved software interfaces, Internet connectivity and social integration, tablet and smartphone pairing, apps and more options for content sources other than cable. The new Ultra HD 4K screens have four times the number of pixels as standard High Definition TVs. On its own, Ultra HD isn't a compelling reason to upgrade unless you are a video buff, especially since you would have to sit extra close to the set or have an enormous TV to notice the difference between 4K and a lower-resolution screen. Price tags are still sky high for these top-of-the-line TVs. LG said its 55-inch OLED HD TV -- OLED stands for organic light-emitting diode, a technology that provides a crisper picture than most other displays -- will cost $12,000 when it arrives in the U.S. in March. There's also a very limited amount of content in the new pixel-heavy Ultra HD format, though more will likely be churned out in the coming years. More in demand now are features for the growing number of users who want to watch TV on all their screens, big and small, and pull from a large selection of content options, not just the cable feed and their DVR. 5 fun and off gadgets from CES . These are some of the popular new software features from this year's crop of televisions at CES. Many of these new options are already available with less expensive set-top boxes and game consoles that can be paired with your existing TV: . Smartphone-like interfaces . We spend so much time swiping around intuitive smartphone interfaces that navigating through TV menus feels like a harsh trip back in time. Manufacturers are making big efforts to update their user interfaces to be more intuitive. Some models are even running the Android-based Google TV platform, which aims to simplify channel browsing. Samsung showed a revamped, busy interface called the Smart Hub that will appear on its next generation of smart TVs. It is divided into five sections for live TV and recommendations, streaming content, media stored on the computer, social features and apps. One new feature retailers will love is T-Commerce, which will serve up shopping information for the products and outfits you see in your regular TV shows. The new Panasonic DT60 set has a customizable home screen and voice commands. Streaming content and recommendations . In 2013, having hundreds of mediocre channels to choose from isn't enough. And DVRs are limited in their own right. These days people want the option to stream content and order video on demand from Amazon, Netflix, Apple and other sources. Smart TVs are adding support for these Web-based services. For example, Samsung is adding a way to search multiple content sources at once, similar to Matcha.com and CanIStream.it. There's also been a lot of buzz at CES about TVs that offer tailored recommendations. Some feature built-in "assistants" that track your viewing habits and then tell you what other shows you might also like to watch, much like Netflix does with its delightfully odd categories. Death of the boring remote . The Channel Up and Down buttons aren't much use when you're bopping between Facebook, HBO, Amazon and photos of your last vacation. TV makers are adding new ways to navigate between these, including gestures and voice control. It's a little bit Wii, a little bit Siri. TV makers also are making apps that can turn tablets and smartphones into remote controls for your set. LG's latest Magic Remote, announced on Monday, acts like a mouse, letting you navigate a pointer around the TV screen by moving the remote. It supports voice-recognition commands and lets you switch channels by waving the remote around to spell out numbers. Samsung's televisions also add more gesture controls so you can zoom in and out on photographs or swipe through the many panes of its new interface. More screens . One giant screen isn't enough for many modern viewers. Smartphones and tablets have become popular as second-screen devices for people who multitask while flipping channels. Just open Twitter during any major televised sporting event to see how people are using a second screen to share commentary about the action. Viewers want the option to start an episode of "The Vampire Diaries" on the big TV in the living room and finish it in bed on a tablet. Services such as Netflix and Amazon are already multiscreen, offering streaming video on mobile devices, computers and even your TV through devices such as Xbox and Apple TV. Now smart TVs are adding support for these streaming services plus features that lets your tablet show you a mirror of what's on your TV -- sometimes alongside your social networks. Sony's latest KDL-R550A sets and Panasonic's DT60 have integrated near-field communications (NFC) that allow you to tap your NFC-enabled smartphone or tablet (no Apple products have NFC) to mirror what's on the set or bring up related social content. An upgrading alternative . Smart TVs are expensive, so Samsung has come up with an interesting product to let you upgrade your existing TV without buying a new model. (Cleverly, it doubles as a way to make money from TV buyers between new models.) The Evolution Kit is a black box on the back of a Samsung smart TV that you can replace to upgrade the TV's software and some specifications. The company didn't announce a price for the upgrade module, which was first announced at last year's CES, but says it will be available early this year. The box can update your software to add the newest features and improve your processors for a speedier TV experience. But it can't upgrade the resolution of your screen. | Major TV companies are unveiling their big, ultra high-definition TVs at CES . In addition to 4K and OLED, new TVs are adding social and second-screen features . New features are aimed at people who watch TV on multiple screens . They are targeting people who stream content online . | 9313afc71177d6f4522a4218f6be034bb1440b83 |
Editor's Note: In an exclusive series this week on "Campbell Brown," the FBI has unveiled three additions to its list of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives. The FBI says Semion Mogilevich has been involved in arms trafficking, prostitution, extortion and murder for hire. NEWTOWN, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- Semion Mogilevich may be the most powerful man you've never heard of. The FBI says Mogilevich, a Russian mobster, has been involved in arms trafficking, prostitution, extortion and murder for hire. "He has access to so much, including funding, including other criminal organizations, that he can, with a telephone call and order, affect the global economy," said FBI Supervisory Special Agent Peter Kowenhoven. Mogilevich's alleged brutality, financial savvy and international influence have earned him a slot on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, though he has lived and operated from Moscow, Russia, for years. Watch CNN report on Mogilevich » . "He's a big man. He's a very powerful man," FBI Special Agent Mike Dixon said. "I think more powerful than a John Gotti would be, because he has the ability to influence nations. Gotti never reached that stature." He is accused of swindling Canadian and U.S. investors out of $150 million in a complex international financial scheme. It centered on a firm called YBM, which purportedly made magnets at a factory in Hungary. Authorities say the scheme involved preparing bogus financial books and records, lying to Securities and Exchange Commission officials, offering bribes to accountants and inflating stock values of YBM, which was headquartered in Newtown, Pennsylvania. In a raid in 1998, FBI agents found a treasure trove of documents -- purchase orders, invoices, shipping orders, even technical drawings -- everything a legitimate business would produce. But there was one thing missing. "There were no magnets," Dixon said. It was all a sham, investigators say. "In essence, what his companies were doing was moving money through bank accounts in Budapest and countries throughout the world and reporting these to the investment community as purchases of raw materials and sales of magnets," Dixon said. And because the company was publicly traded, anyone owning the stock would have made a lot of money. "And of course Mogilevich controlled large, large blocks of stock from the outset, and he made a substantial amount of money in this process," Dixon said. Investors lost millions into the pockets of Mogilevich and his associates. He and his associates were indicted in 2003 on 45 counts of racketeering, securities fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering. Russian authorities arrested him last year on tax fraud charges, but because the United States does not have an extradition treaty with Russia, he remained beyond the reach of U.S. law enforcement. He is now free on bail. The FBI believes Mogilevich moved on after YBM and began manipulating international energy markets, giving him a large influence on other nations. Dixon noted that Mogilevich had control or influence over companies involved in natural gas disputes between Russia and Ukraine. Authorities say Mogilevich, who has an economics degree from Ukraine, is known for his ruthless nature but also for his business acumen, which led to his nickname "the Brainy Don." "He has a very sophisticated, well-educated, loyal group of associates that he works with," Dixon said. "He hires top-notch consultants, attorneys, risk management firms to assist him and protect him in his criminal ventures." Louise Shelley, an organized crime expert from George Mason University, says Mogilevich is a new kind of criminal. "The major criminal organizations in Russia have not only tapped into people with economics degrees," Shelley said. "They've tapped into people with PHDs in finance and statistics who assist them." The FBI hopes Mogilevich will eventually travel to a country that has an extradition treaty with the U.S. But, in case he doesn't, his wanted poster will be distributed all over Russia. | Semion Mogilevich accused of taking U.S., Canadian investors for $150 million . FBI believes he moved on to manipulating international energy markets . FBI: Mogilevich's business degree, large influence on nations make him dangerous . Alleged Russian mobster known for his ruthlessness, power, business acumen . | 483fcf9cb5807fd311156c1504efcb7636a5851e |
A disgruntled resident has posted a hilarious rant on their neighbour's door, berating them for their angry lovemaking, 'primeval grunting' and 'Western Sydney' accent. In the passive aggressive missive, which is titled, 'To The Resident Of Apartment 12', the writer even asks their amorous neighbour to bolt the bed to the floor in a bid to keep the noise down. The anonymous author lives in the Sydney suburb of Bondi which is saturated with hedonistic teenagers and backpackers, and the note was picked up by Reddit on Friday morning. Scroll down for video . Yours disgruntedly! Vexed neighbour in Bondi, Sydney, fires this hilarious missive to their neighbour begging them to bolt their bed to the floor and curb their 'very loud, very short yet very annoying' love-making sessions . After congratulating the recipient on their 'lustrous social life' and 'many friends, (many of whom are rather good looking) the secret scribe says they cannot stand 'what seems to happen of a Saturday night between the hours of 2-3am. And in a clear dig as the mystery lover's prowess, who they claim is called Nick, the fellow resident swipes, 'luckily for me Nick doesn't appear to last long, and for that I am thankful. 'I do not wish to pry in on your sex life, apartment 12,' they continue, 'however I do ask that before you mount Nick (or the rhino) I suggest you bolt the bed to the floor as so the rest of the beautiful residents here do not have to listen to your VERY loud, VERY short yet VERY annoying lovemaking sessions. The Sydney suburb Bondi is a mecca for students, backpackers and fun-seekers searching for sun, sand, sea... and booze . 'Let me give you a play by play,' they continue. 'As I am asleep, dreaming of playing the perfect game of golf, I near the 13th hole, when suddenly I am awoken by what I can only describe as sounding like a Rhinoceros attempting to demolish a wall, with a jackhammer, whilst high on meth...and cocaine.' The wordsmith continues, 'I do not know who Nick is or how much he weighs, I can only assume it is a lot due to the fact that on several occasions my bedroom slight begins to shake.' Party-central: Bondi beach is a haven for hedonistic international back-packers on the hunt for a good time . The cranky writer also comes across as a bit snobby as they confess they can handle the 'hordes of alcohol-fuelled guests, coming and going at all hours of the morning.' And they admit, 'I can handle your annoying and slightly western suburbs sounding voice as you seem to proclaim your love for your hordes of booze filled guests,' and 'I can deal with the hordes of intoxicated foreigners screaming 'I love Bondi' in broken English as I eat dinner with my family'. Berating them for their stray cigarettes that land on the balcony, the troubled typist helpfully reminds the recipient, 'that ashtrays have been around since 1825 and are available from most good retail outlets,' and points them in the direction of the Bondi convenience store. Party time: A scene typical of a Friday and Saturday night on Bondi's main streets during the summer . Over to you No12... | Bondi resident posts angry missive on 'annoying' neighbour's door . The note has been posted to Reddit on Friday morning . Asks them to 'bolt the bed to the floor' to curb the noise . The writer also complained about the hordes of 'alcohol-fuelled foreign guests' visiting the apartment at all hours . Bondi, in Sydney's densely populated eastern suburbs, is famous for the hedonistic behaviour of its residents, including foreign backpackers . | 8974aa78b3c78dca8f115fd279460f667d21cd65 |
SEX AND FILM . by Barry Forshaw . (Palgrave Macmillan £19.99) There was breathless excitement when an immensely raunchy, bestselling novel was adapted for the screen, with overwrought cinema-goers queuing in their droves to see it. But this was not Fifty Shades Of Grey. This was The Sheik, in 1921. And it starred Rudolph Valentino, whose sex appeal was such that when he died only five years later, aged just 31, some of his more committed female fans responded to the news by killing themselves. The history of sex on the big screen is about as old as the cinema itself. Barry Forshaw brings it wham, bam up to date, with analyses both of Fifty Shades and a much franker, darker exploration of sexual deviancy, Lars von Trier’s alarming 2013 film Nymphomaniac. But for me, the real gems in this formidably well-researched and erudite book concern the earlier manifestations of sex on-screen. Or off-screen, in the case of The Sheik, in which a wryly unambiguous caption, ‘After a week of sullen obedience . . . ’, told audiences that Valentino’s desert predator had finally had his wicked way with the headstrong Lady Diana. Like Fifty Shades, the book itself was rather less coy. The depiction of sex in the cinema has changed hugely over the years, the American film industry was notoriously cautious about what was shown - Jane Russell pictured in a poster for The Outlaw . By the Thirties, coyness was being forced onto Hollywood by increasingly vigilant censors, the so-called Hays Office. The African jungle was deemed far enough from ‘civilisation’ to be permitted some erotic freedom in Tarzan The Ape Man (1932), in which Maureen O’Sullivan and Johnny Weissmuller wore skimpy outfits, which, from some angles, made them appear naked. But then, the censors pounced. And by the next film in the series, they had ‘modestly covered Tarzan and Jane in almost comically baggy costumes’. Unsurprisingly, it was randy Europeans who introduced sex to Hollywood. In Ekstase, a Czech film of 1933, a young Hedy Lamarr is shown in obvious post-orgasmic bliss. The film was duly seized by U.S. Customs and prosecuted for obscenity. But America couldn’t keep out Marlene Dietrich, and they had their own sex goddess in the hourglass form of naughty Mae West, who had her own way of outfoxing the morality police. In I’m No Angel (1933), she saucily adjusts her gown and then purrs, ‘Am I making myself clear, boys?’ There was nothing censorable about the line, but nothing wholesome, either. Not much did get past the Hays Office — including Margaret Lockwood’s cleavage in The Wicked Lady (1945), the first British film to be cut before U.S. audiences were allowed to see it. Forshaw suggests the censors were so distracted by Jane Russell’s gravity-defying embonpoint in The Outlaw (1943) that they missed distinct hints of homoeroticism elsewhere in the film. Today, the restrictions — no horizontal embraces, no ‘excessive’ kissing, no suggestion of intercourse outside marriage — seem comical. In Casablanca (1942), there could be no hint of a ‘sex affair’ between Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, so audiences had to decide for themselves what he meant when he said: ‘We’ll always have Paris.’ Memories of an outing up the Eiffel Tower? Probably not. In the Fifties and Sixties, such strictures began to crumble — not that the ‘sex comedies’ starring Doris Day and Rock Hudson were anything other than irreproachably conservative, prompting comedian Oscar Levant to say that he’d known Doris Day ‘before she was a virgin’. Even in Britain, old censorship habits died hard, with county councils allowed to overrule certificates dished out by the British Board of Film Classification, as several did with Saturday Night And Sunday Morning (1960), on the grounds that Albert Finney’s priapic, working-class hero was an affront to the reputation of decent factory workers. Throughout cinematic history, of course, the greater the puritanical outrage generated by a film, the more people have wanted to see it. That was notably so of Bernardo Bertolucci’s film Last Tango In Paris (1972), starring Marlon Brando — and it also ‘possibly helped the sales of a certain kitchen commodity utilised as a sexual lubricant’. Butter, in short. But Last Tango only pushed at certain boundaries, and obeyed the unwritten law that female nudity is more acceptable than male. The tumescent penis to this day is not often seen in mainstream cinema (indeed, in Fifty Shades Of Grey, Jamie Dornan’s Christian seems to have no genitalia at all). Forshaw offers one good explanation: limp apparatus in a sex scene would give the game away — the game being the many cameramen, boom operators and make-up artists who, by all accounts, make genuine arousal on a film set a near-impossibility. Forshaw’s book is a work of scholarship, not gossip, but that doesn’t stop him dropping mischievous references to the rampant ironies yielded by more than a century of sex on the screen. The thoroughly chaste Brief Encounter (1945) is often cited by moralists as a perfect example of how romance can be depicted without sex, but Forshaw notes gleefully that the film’s director, David Lean, was well-known for his energetic promiscuity, and its writer, Noel Coward, for his homosexuality. An acquaintance of mine told me years ago that he’d once checked in at the Palace Hotel in St Moritz behind Noel Coward and his long-time companion, Graham Payn, and that Coward startled the stiff, Swiss receptionist by fruitily announcing himself and Payn as ‘Mr and Mrs Noel Coward’. His was a very different world to that of Brief Encounter. But then, sex on screen — or the lack of it — has always unfolded in a parallel universe. That’s the magic of the movies. | The depiction of sex on the big screen has changed hugely over the years . Censorship in American cinema was notoriously restrictive . In his new book Barry Forshaw explores Fifty Shades and others . | 916b5c7eb52cfa70d714d0d35f317927cd2b7b63 |
Manchester United are in talks with former Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes. Manager Louis van Gaal has offered the 32-year-old a chance to complete his rehabilitation from a knee injury and to work his way back to fitness with the club. Valdes, a free agent, will have his recovery supervised by the United medical staff before training with the first team, as he bids to regain full fitness. Victor Valdes is a free agent after he did not renew his contract with Barcelona at the end of last season . Former Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes, pictured in 2011, is in talks with Manchester United over a move . Valdes played 535 games for Barcelona over 12 glorious years. Here he is pictured lifting the European Cup after Barcelona's 2009 triumph over Manchester United in the final in Rome . Barcelona (2002- 2014) Appearances:535 . Spain (2010-) Caps: 20 . The free agent had been expected to join fierce rivals Liverpool but Brendan Rodgers this week indicated that deal was off amid suggestions Valdes was not keen on a four day training stint prior to signing. Valdes has been out for six months with knee ligament damage, an injury that scuppered a proposed move to Monaco. However, he is now fit again and looking for a club to suit his ambitions. Valdes was at United's Carrington training HQ yesterday along with his representatives and is keen to discuss all possibilities. For their part United want to see how he has recovered from his injury before committing to a contract and will assess his recovery before offering anything. United are in talks over a new contract for David de Gea but they want improved competition for the 23-year-old Spain international and Valdes certainly fits the bill having won an array of honours during a glittering career. Meanwhile, Michael Carrick will continue his recovery from ankle ligament damage on Friday. The 33-year-old has been out since July but is due to play for United's U21s against West Ham United at Rush Green. The England midfielder was an unused substitute for Monday night's 2-2 draw at West Bromwich Albion and was expected to be part of the squad to face Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday. The time for recovery between games means he will likely take his place on the bench once again rather than figure from the start against Jose Mourinho's title chasers. Valdes beats Rooney to the ball during Barca's 3-1 triumph over United in the 2011 Champions League final . Valdes has more appearances for Barcelona than any other goalkeeper . Valdes is pictured with his wife Yolanda Cardona, left, in 2013, and and earlier this year in Madrid . The Spanish goalkeeper lies on a stretcher after sustaining a serious knee injury in March of this year . United striker Robin van Persie is anticipating an edgy contest between the two rivals. The Dutchman, who has come under criticism for his lacklustre performances of late, said: 'Chelsea have a very good team and we have a good team. But it's always a bit more edgy and I like that. You can sense that as well with the fans because they are a bit more on top of it in games like this. So in every way it's a game to look forward to. 'There's always a bit of a different feeling but it's not that we're less concentrated for other games but there's a bit extra tension in a good way. You don't really know what's going to happen before the game because it can go both ways.' Like our Manchester United Facebook page. | Valdes is a free agent after he decided not to renew his Barcelona contract . The Spanish goalkeeper is training with United as he bids to regain fitness . He was expected to join Liverpool this week but the deal fell through . Valdes' representatives were at United's Carrington HQ on Thursday . The 32-year-old played over 500 times for Barcelona over 12 years . | 020027e22793c6251c8664a397553ae58b37e6e8 |
Editor's note: CNN.com has a business partnership with CareerBuilder.com, which serves as the exclusive provider of job listings and services to CNN.com. As social media becomes the latest branding strategy, networking technique, job seeking tool and recruitment vehicle, it's also becoming the latest way for people to get job offers rescinded, reprimanded at work and even fired. Everyone has "my-job-sucks" moments, but it's probably best for your career not to have them online. It's happened so many times -- publicized and not -- that one would think we could learn from others' mistakes. (But, if that were the case, I wouldn't have anything to write about, now would I?) A recent Tweet by a potential Cisco employee, for example, turned ugly when he decided to tout a recent job offer: . "Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty paycheck against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work." Unfortunately for "theconnor" (the handle for the would-be employee), Tim Levad, a "channel partner advocate" for Cisco, saw the tweet and responded with this: . "Who is the hiring manger, I'm sure they would love to know that you will hate the work. We here at Cisco are versed in the Web." Terrible tweets . Everyone has their "My-job-sucks," "I-hate-my-co-workers," or "Give-me-more-money" moments. But, they seem to forget that as employers increase their online presence using social networking sites as recruitment and branding strategies, it might be best for their career not to have these moments on the Internet. Paul Wilson, a freelance/corporate Web marketer and blogger, found several of such moments on Twitter, a social networking and micro-blogging site, and posted these "Top 10 Tweets to Get You Fired" [sic'd]: . 1. "hate my job!! i want to tell my bosses how dumb they are and how meaningless this job is, then quit, and be happy!" 2. "So my job was to test all the food at the new resturant, can I just say, ughew. I'm going to taco bell then twistee treat." 3. "Workin... This job sucks worse then the economy!" 4. "I'm going to work! Walmart! Must find better job! I hate it when chicks there have a deeper voice than me and refer to me as foo!" 5. "Also I'm really bummed that I'm working today, i asked off so i could study but my boss is a ******* **** ***** ***** who can't read." 6. "Coworker smuggled out a chair for me. Currently being paid to SIT around and listen to John Barrowman on my iPod. I don't hate my job today!" 7. "having sex dreams of people you work with makes for an awkward day." 8. "smoking weed at work is so [EDITED] great :)" 9. "It's bad when you overhear the n00b programmer say "I used to work at McDonalds with him" and you wonder if he is talking about the CEO..." 10. "Huh, with my boss on twitter, maaaybe I should take down that sexy picture of her... but her reaction will be priceless!" Facebook fired . Twitter is not the only culprit in career self-destruction. Facebook, a popular social networking site, has housed its fair share of user firings: . Kimberly Swann, a former employee for Ivell Marketing and Logistics of Clacton, U.K., thought her job was boring -- and she said so on her Facebook page, according to an article in The Daily Telegraph. Swann was called into her manager's office and handed a letter that cited her Facebook comments as the reason for dismissal: . "Following your comments made on Facebook about your job and the company we feel it is better that, as you are not happy and do not enjoy your work we end your employment with Ivell Marketing & Logistics with immediate effect." An MSNBC article remembers Kevin Colvin, the legendary young intern who e-mailed his boss, claiming a "family emergency" would keep him out of the office around Halloween. His co-workers (and Facebook friends), however, saw a photo of Colvin dressed as a fairy at a Halloween party time-stamped on the same day of the "emergency." Colvin's boss responded to him with an e-mail CC'd to the entire company, firing him and including the incriminating fairy picture. In March 2009, the same MSNBC article cites Dan Leone, a Philadelphia Eagles stadium employee, who was fired after slamming the football organization for trading a player in this status update: . "Dan is [expletive] devastated about Dawkins signing with Denver. . .Dam Eagles R Retarted!![Sic]" Two days later, the head of event operations said they needed to talk about his Facebook status; instead, he got the boot. Social networking don'ts . If you want to use your profile to get hired or -- or at least not get fired -- here are three basic rules to keep in mind: . 1. Don't announce interviews, raises or new jobs . As exemplified by "theconnor," how you talk about any of these sensitive topics on your social networking site is key. If you're unemployed, writing "Interview today -- wish me luck!" would be OK, or if you got a job, something along the lines of "So excited about my new job!" is totally acceptable. If you're currently employed, however, I don't think your boss would be too happy to see something like, "Trying to con my boss into giving me a $5K raise. SUCKA!" 2. Don't badmouth your current or previous employer . Just like in an interview, keep your rants about your boss or company to yourself. If hiring managers see that you're willing to trash a colleague online they assume you'll do it to them, too. Plus, there's always the possibility of getting fired if someone sees your negative comments. 3. Don't mention your job search if you're still employed . If your boss knows you're on the lookout for a new job, feel free to advertise it in your status. If you're keeping your search below the radar, however, don't publish anything, anywhere. Even if you aren't connected to your boss online, somebody can get the information back to him or her. Copyright CareerBuilder.com 2009. All rights reserved. The information contained in this article may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority . | As social media increases, it is also becoming a way to get reprimanded or fired . Touting a job offer or badmouthing your job could get back to the boss upstairs . The same rules for Twitter also apply to your Facebook status update . Another good rule? Don't mention your job search if you're still employed . | 3897316e52d87087cdb3a0377c1130f58afcd539 |
(CNN)Fox News firebrand Bill O'Reilly agrees. So does Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer. Even conservative kingpin Rush Limbaugh has something in common with the thousands of protesters flooding American streets with anger over the grand jury decision in the Eric Garner case. They all think the grand jury got it wrong. It was enough for the satirists at NBC's "Saturday Night Live" to poke a little fun at civil rights icon Al Sharpton, who has found his world suddenly turned topsy-turvy will all the new allies in the Garner case. "What the hell is going on?" an actor portraying Sharpton said on Saturday's program. "Last night I was sitting in front of my TV, and I found myself saying, 'You damn right, Bill O'Reilly.' I'm all messed up!" And it's not just O'Reilly. In contrast with another high-profile case involving brutality complaints against police -- the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri -- a solid majority of Americans disagree with the New York grand jury that declined to charge Officer Daniel Pantaleo in Garner's death, according to a Bloomberg Politics poll released Sunday. 'Week of Outrage' gets underway . According to the poll, 60% of Americans feel the grand jury made the wrong decision. Twenty-five percent of respondents said they agreed with the decision. The backlash -- both from conservative commentators and the public -- is different from the reaction to the recent grand jury decision to forgo charges against the white police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown, a much more widely reported incident. In that case, a majority of Americans agreed with the grand jury, although opinions were split firmly along racial, and often political lines. According to the Bloomberg poll, 52% of Americans -- including 64% of whites -- sided with the grand jury's findings. Thirty-six percent disagreed, including 78% of African-American respondents to the poll, which was conducted December 3 to December 5 and has a margin of error of three percentage points. A CNN/ORC poll found similar divisions in the Ferguson case. In that poll -- conducted before the grand jury decision was announced -- 54% of non-whites said Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson should be charged with murder. Among whites, 23% shared the same feeling. Washington Post writer Aaron Blake said the poll results in the Garner case show it is "the turning point Ferguson never was." "In the Garner case, there is a video, leading to less debate about the particulars of precisely what happened," Blake wrote in a piece published Monday. "As this poll shows, that is much more conducive to building consensus. And when it comes to taking action in response -- action of any kind -- that kind of bipartisan and biracial consensus makes it significantly more likely," he wrote. Not so fast, said Jason Johnson, a political science professor at Hiram College in Hiram, Ohio. "Acknowledging something is wrong is not the same as doing something about it," he said. He said conservative pundits who have "cherry picked" the Garner case aren't likely to stand arm-in-arm with protesters demanding reforms. But what of the poll results showing more Americans take issue with the Garner decision? That's where Johnson sees change coming, but not with Garner's death as the catalyst. Political and demographic changes have been driving those changes for years, Johnson said, ever since the Rodney King case roiled Los Angeles and the nation after police officers were taped beating King as he rolled in agony on a Los Angeles street following a high-speed chase. Trust in police has fallen in recent years, he said, citing poll results that particularly show a decline in trust among African-Americans. Meanwhile, the country has become more diverse. Those changes will eventually force a change in how police do their work, Johnson said. What the Garner case could do, he said, is move the national conversation past what some consider to be the overly simplistic suggestion that police body cameras will solve everything. "The changes we're going to see now, if there are any, are going to have to be much more substantive and much more on the ground," he said. | Polling, pundit reactions, suggest outrage over Eric Garner case is widespread . Conservative icons join protesters in criticizing grand jury decision . But political science professor says he doesn't think that means the case is a watershed . | 4e897a015a14d8376b5dd116bcd5a7f373e7a17e |
By . Toby Harnden and Thomas Durante . PUBLISHED: . 21:59 EST, 5 June 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 07:43 EST, 6 June 2012 . Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin increased his majority in a recall election victory that delivered a warning shot to President Obama and showed that Republican politicians can face down unions and survive in office. Walker finished with a 7 per cent lead, confounding the exit poll results that had indicated a 50:50 split with Walker's Democratic rival Tom Barrett, mayor of Milwaukee. Turnout was very heavy and gave Republicans hope that Mitt Romney could prevail in the Democratic-leaning swing state that Obama won comfortably in 2008. Victor: Gov Scott Walker celebrates his recall win during a victory party after he defeated Democratic challenger Tom Barrett in the special recall election . The vote came after a bitter 15-month battle that divided Wisconsin, traditionally a centrist state, with union members and Democrats demonstrating against Walker's signing of a March 2011 law throwing out most collective-bargaining rights from public employees. In a race that became a nationally-significant contest, more than $63million was spent, most of it from conservative groups backing Walker. Although both Obama and Romney stayed away, both sides viewed the recall vote as a potential harbinger for November. Walker said his victory showed that fundamental issues of debt and deficits needed to be addressed, that austerity measures rather than increased spending was needed and 'voters really do want leaders who stand up and take the tough decisions.' Survival: Scott Walker is the first governor in U.S. history to survive a recall attempt . Loss: Walker defeated Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and the union leaders who rallied for months against his agenda . Voters chanted 'thank you Scott' as the governor proclaimed: 'Now is the time to move forward.' Walker affirmed his dedication to working with political foes, saying he would have a pow-wow with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle over brats, burgers and 'maybe a little bit of good Wisconsin beer.' Romney said that the 'results will echo beyond the borders of Wisconsin' and Walker had 'demonstrated over the past year what sound fiscal policies can do to turn an economy around, and I believe that in November voters across the country will demonstrate that they want the same in Washington.' The Obama campaign issued a statement saying: 'While tonight’s outcome was not what we had hoped for - no one can dispute the strong message sent to Governor Walker. Campaign: Wisconsin resident Don Richards carries a sign supporting the recall of Wisconsin Republican Scott Walker on election day in Caledonia, Wisconsin . Split on the issue: Both sides mobilized thousands of people and millions of dollars to influence voters, whom polls showed were more divided than ever . ‘Hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites from all walks of life took a stand against the politics of division and against the flood of secret and corporate money spent on behalf of Scott Walker, which amounted to a massive spending gap of more than $31 million to $4 million.' Later Tuesday, Barrett conceded to Walker. In a concession speech, Barrett said: 'It is up to all of us, their side and our side, to listen. To listen to each other.' The recall effort, a rematch of the 2010 governor's race in the state, was branded a civil war in America's Dairyland. Barrett often accused Walker of . neglecting Wisconsin in the interests of boosting his own political . career by making the state 'the tea party capital of the country.' Sign of the times: Yard signs in support of Scott Walker line the streets on recall election day in Caledonia, Wisconsin . Casting his vote: Scott Walker smirks for photographers at a polling station in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, on Tuesday . | Republican fights off recall challenge from Mayor Tom Barrett . First governor in U.S. history to keep his job in the face of recall challenge . Overwhelming voter turnout giving GOP hope that Romney will prevail in Wisconsin in presidential election . | 5d8a4d5c4ea361dd598e0151fdc00c0d0b90095d |
Unfair: Richard Chapman was dismissed by Malvern Town Council in April this year for giving colleagues tomato plants . A former council clerk has won a compensation payout after he was unfairly sacked from his job - for giving colleagues tomato plants. Richard Chapman was dismissed by Malvern Town Council in April this year after it was claimed the fruity gifts showed favouritism towards some members of staff. But on Thursday an employment tribunal heard that only one worker at the authority had not received a plant. The female employee moaned to council chiefs that the town clerk was favouring other workers by dishing out the tomatoes to everyone but her. She complained to bosses that the plants - brought from Mr Chapman's greenhouse - had been doled out to every other member of staff. He was then accused of bullying, harassment and favouritism and was sacked following an internal investigation which found him guilty of gross misconduct. Mr Chapman launched legal action against the Worcestershire authority - claiming unfair dismissal. An employment tribunal has now ruled in his favour and agreed he was sacked after 12-years of 'unblemished service'. Employment judge Mary Cocks branded the council's investigation 'flawed' following a four day hearing in Birmingham. Mrs Cocks dismissed the authorities claims and revealed that even the town mayor had sabotaged his return to work. She said Cllr Julian Roskams had deliberately put obstacles in the way of Mr Chapman returning to his job following the investigation. She added: 'The council acted outside the bounds of reasonable responses in dismissing Mr Chapman. 'I have rarely heard a case where the unfairness of the dismissal was so apparent to me. 'The investigation by Angela Roberts mushroomed out of control, and the report was woefully inadequate. Complaint: A female employee moaned to council chiefs that the town clerk was favouring other workers by dishing out the tomatoes to everyone but her . 'Councillor Roskams was patently dissatisfied with the findings of the disciplinary panel and put obstacles in the way of Mr Chapman returning to work.' Giving evidence Mr Chapman said he made tomato plants from his garden available to all staff members. His solicitor Richard Hignett slammed the case against him as a 'witch hunt' and labelled the appeal panel that rejected his pleas to return to work a 'kangaroo court'. He said: 'This essentially turned into a witch hunt against my client, because the council failed to control the terms of the investigation.' During the mayor's evidence Mr Hignett told Cllr Roskams: 'You wanted this investigation to be as wide as it needed to be in order to see just how much dirt the investigation could stick on Mr Chapman.' The tribunal also heard the council investigated allegations Mr Chapman had shouted at two staff members. He was also accused of 'bellowing' at another individual in a car park after allegedly falling foul of a car park attendant. The council launched a full investigation into his conduct after a complaint from colleague Deborah Powell. The local authority, which opposed his unfair dismissal claim, alleged he had 'breached the council's bullying and harassment policy..' Mr Chapman was suspended, eventually allowed to return to work, but later dismissed in April. Giving evidence, Mr Chapman said he'd apologised to the two staff members he shouted at in October last year while suffering from stress. He said he was told an official warning would remain on his record for ever, which is in contravention of the ACAS code used by the council. The tribunal decided that dismissal was unfair and ordered the council to pay him an unspecified amount. Speaking after the hearing - which has cost the taxpayer thousands of pounds - Mr Chapman said he was 'relieved' by the ruling. He added: 'It's been a very stressful 12 months and I'm totally drained. 'I shouted at two people when I was wrong and that's all I did. 'I worked with most of the people at the council for 10 years and was very supportive of my staff.' | Richard Chapman dismissed by Malvern Council, Worcestershire, in April . Was claimed he showed favouritism at work through gifts of tomato plants . But turns out woman who complained was only person who didn't get one . Councillor's lawyer says case against him was a 'witch hunt...to dig up dirt' At an employment tribunal the judge slams council as 'woefully inadequate' | 49e2ec1bf59d3bee3e2e0fb83195711810ce3a4d |
By . Jenny Hope . PUBLISHED: . 19:41 EST, 30 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:36 EST, 31 May 2013 . The use of drugs to treat alcohol addiction increased by 70 per cent in the past decade. Doctors last year prescribed almost £3million worth of drugs, up from £1.72million in 2003. The number of prescriptions for medication to help alcoholics quit or prevent them from relapsing went up from 102,741 in 2003 to 178,247 in 2012. Doctors last year prescribed almost £3 million worth of drugs - up 70 per cent from £1.72m in 2003 . The drugs include Antabuse, which makes anyone who takes it sick if they drink alcohol. The number of hospital admissions . related to drinking also rose sharply, according to data from the Health . and Social Care Information Centre for England. Hospitals handled 200,900 admissions . last year which were blamed solely on drinking, a 1 per cent rise on . 2011 (198,900) and a 41 per cent rise on 2002-03 (142,000). Men account for around two-thirds of patients needing hospital treatment for alcoholism . There were 1,220,300 hospital . admissions attributed partly or wholly to drinking last year – a . doubling since 2002-03, when the figure stood at 510,700. Men account . for around two-thirds of those needing hospital treatment. Dr Nick Sheron, Royal College of . Physicians adviser on alcohol, said: ‘It is extremely important that . patients who are dependent on alcohol have access to drugs that can help . them recover. ‘However, the rise in prescriptions of . drugs to treat alcohol dependency is indicative of the huge strain . alcohol abuse puts on our society.’ A Department of Health spokesman added: ‘It’s encouraging to see that more people are getting help for problems with alcohol. But these figures prove that alcohol is causing harm to the health of hundreds of thousands of people and we must continue to act. ‘That is why we are already improving prevention by funding alcohol risk assessments at GPs and encouraging increased access to alcohol liaison nurses in hospitals.’ | Doctors last year prescribed almost £3million worth of drugs . Drugs included Antabuse which makes anyone sick if they drink alcohol . | 1a2ceb04a15ad4e6e1fbace3931ec9b0bfc9a533 |
By . Eddie Wrenn . PUBLISHED: . 05:51 EST, 28 March 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 06:05 EST, 28 March 2012 . Balram Singh, 21, escaped jail after a hit-and-run on Kate Allan, 23, in Bristol . A hit-and-run driver mowed down a woman on a pedestrian crossing as he rushed to sign on and collect his benefit money. Balram Singh sped through a red light and ploughed into Kate Allan as he raced to the job centre in Brentry, Bristol. The 23-year-old victim narrowly managed to move her head from out of the path of the VW Polo’s wheels - but Singh drove off and left her screaming in agony on the road on December 29 last year. However he has dodged a prison sentence after a judge accepted that Singh, 21, showed 'genuine remorse'. Bristol Crown Court heard that Singh ignored witnesses’ pleas to stop and drove off to a benefits office where he was late to collect a job seeker’s allowance payment, which is £67.50 a week. And when police finally caught up with them, he said he drove off because he wanted to search the internet and see what would happen to him. Prosecuting, Nadeem Aullybocus told the court Singh took the car from outside the family home without permission. He only had a provisional licence at the time, meaning he was not supposed to drive unsupervised, and therefore was uninsured. Miss Allan was waiting at a pelican crossing near the Crow Lane roundabout in Henbury. When the traffic lights went red and the green light for pedestrians lit up, she started to cross - before Singh ploughed into her with such force the windscreen of the car cracked. In a victim impact statement read to the court, she said: 'If I had not moved my head out of the way of the car, he would have driven over me.' As the Polo was driven away a pedestrian and a driver who witnessed the crash both looked Singh in the eye and signalled for him to stop but he carried on. Meanwhile, Miss Allan was 'screaming out in pain', Mr Aullybocus added. The court heard he carried on to the benefits office, but was too late to collect his payment. Police soon tracked Singh down and when they spoke to him he asked 'how is the lady?'. Crow Lane Roundabout in Bristol: Kate Allan was crossing the road at traffic lights when Singh ploughed into her . When asked why he had not stopped after the crash, Mr Aullybocus said Singh told police: 'I wanted to come home and look on the internet to see what would happen to me.' Miss Allan suffered pain in her right leg, neck, ribs and down the left side of her body. She was off work for two weeks but was still getting pain two months later. Her anxiety medication had to be increased following the incident and she was nervous about leaving her house for a couple of weeks. In her victim impact statement, she said: 'The incident has left me really shaken and I’m anxious about crossing the road in the future. All in all, the incident has caused me a lot of pain and problems. Singh admitted aggravated vehicle taking, failing to stop at a road accident, driving without insurance and driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence. Mitigating, Rodney Wilson accepted it was 'sheer luck' that Miss Allan had not been seriously injured. He submitted a number of positive character references and said his client had shown genuine remorse. He told the court Singh had been expecting a lift to the job centre from his brother, but his brother had been called into work. Singh then borrowed the family car to drive the three miles himself. When he saw the crossing lights changing he sped up to try to get through before they went red. Mr Wilson said he did brake momentarily after the collision, but drove off 'in panic' and in fear of what those who witnessed the incident might do to him. Recorder of Bristol, Judge Neil Ford QC spared him from prison because of his lack of previous convictions, early guilty pleas and 'genuine remorse'. He imposed an eight-month sentence, suspended for two years. Judge Ford disqualified Singh from driving for two years, ordered one year’s supervision, 300 hours of unpaid work, a four-month curfew and Singh must pay Miss Allan £1,500 compensation. | Balrram Singh left Kate Allan screaming in agony as he drove off to sign on and collect £67.50-a-week payment . When police caught up with him, he rushed off again to see on internet how he might be punished . | 3bd3a0e8565b83da4131c95bcfaa085cb700bfc7 |
Two jihadi clerics and a New York lawyer implored Islamic State leaders to release Abdul-Rahman (Peter) Kassig and desist from murdering innocent civilians, a report has revealed. The talks, backed by the FBI, ran for just under a month before Kassig's brutal murder on November 16, according to emails read by The Guardian. Stanley Cohen, a US lawyer who has represented members of Hamas, got clearance from US counter-terrorism officials to reach out to extremist preacher Abu Qatada and Abu Muhammed al-Maqdisi for the mission. But a day after al-Maqdisi predicted Kassig's imminent release, he was detained in Jordan - despite having formal backing from the FBI to conduct talks without arrest. And now US officials deny any knowledge of the email that agreed to protect al-Maqdisi from arrest, the paper claims. Scroll down for video . Plot: Emails reveal an FBI-backed mission involving prominent jihadi clerics came within days of Peter Kassig . According to the report, Cohen - who represented Osama bin Laden's son-in-law - allegedly sent an email to US counter-terrorism confirming that Jordanian officials would not detain al-Maqdisi over correspondence with Isis cleric Turki al-Binali - al-Maqdisi's former student. The aim was to secure Kassig's release - in exchange the clerics would cease to denounce ISIS in public. The FBI paid $24,000 for the group's translator expenses for 17 days, the report states. Al-Maqdisi started WhatsApp messaging with Binali on October 23, and by October 26 told Cohen he was confident Kassig would be released based on their conversations. But the next day, al-Maqdisi was detained in Jordan for inciting terrorism via the internet. On November 16, ISIS released footage of Kassig's beheading. Cohen insists he had secured al-Maqdisi's protection, a fact with US counter-terrorism officials dispute. Cohen told The Daily Telegraph: 'The immediate goal was to save Kassig but we also wanted to set up protocols to free other captives and prevent future hostage-takings. Mission: Controversial lawyer Stanley Cohen believed he secured an agreement with Jordanian officials to send Abu Qatada and Abu Muhammed al-Maqdisi into the country for talks without having them arrested . Plan foiled: The mission fell through when al-Maqdisi (left) was detained for inciting terrorism via the internet after negotiating with ISIS clerics over WhatsApp. He was working with Abu Qatada (right) 'We proposed that they release Kassig as a gesture in honour of prisoners at Gitmo and in Israeli prisons. We were making progress and then the Jordanians arrested Maqdisi. 'Someone in the Jordan or US didn't want this deal to go through. I urged the Americans to pick up the phone to get Maqdisi released. But he remained in prison and the captive was killed.' Cohen will be jailed for 18 months in January after being found guilty on tax charges. Prosecutors say Cohen filed no tax returns for six years, requested a filing extension each year and made modest payments toward taxes due. In September, Cohen's client Sulaiman Abu Ghaith received life in prison for acting as the voice of al-Qaida after the Sept. 11 terror attacks. Cohen argued there was no evidence Abu Ghaith participated directly in terrorist plots. | New York lawyer Stanley Cohen enlisted prominent clerics Abu Qatada and Abu Muhammed al-Maqdisi to negotiate with ISIS cleric Turki al-Binali . They planned to save Kassig and stop ISIS's random beheadings . Mission involved al-Maqdisi negotiating with Binali over WhatsApp . These WhatsApp discussions almost secured Kassig's release . Jordan 'had agreed al-Maqdisi would not be arrested' - but the day after nearing a deal, al-Maqdisi was arrested for 'inciting terrorism via the web' Kassig was beheaded three weeks later on November 16 . FBI confirmed knowing about the mission and paying for translators but denies knowledge of email agreeing to protect al-Maqdisi . | 9791bf7667711fcbaff744d80cde3eb74dd05da6 |
An artist has created a series of hyper realistic finger paintings which look just like choppy seas, and spectacular icy landscapes. Zaria Forman, 31, whose works take up to a month to complete, has created the landscapes to document the ever-changing beauty of regions affected by climate change. Forman, from Brooklyn in New York, USA, led an Arctic expedition to the north west coast of Greenland purposely with the aim of creating art inspired by the dramatic geography. Her mother, Rena Bass Forman, originally came up with the idea but died before her daughter could see it through, and so she promised to carry out the journey in her name. After formal training at Skidmore college Forman now exhibits extensively in galleries and venues throughout the United States and overseas. Forman's drawings that served as the set design for the classic ballet Giselle, and were used in the set design for House of Cards, a Netflix TV series directed by David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey. The paintings are put on sale on her own personal site, ranging in price from £3,000 ($6,000) to £4,500 (around $9,000). Her main focus is pictures of the ocean, with much of her art taking the form of pictures of sea spray on the shore, or water cascading over rocks or icebergs . Zaria Forman paints waters that are incredibly choppy, and ones that are serenely still, with both giving her a unique challenge in her work as an artist . Zaria Forman, the artist behind the seascape visages. Forman uses layers of paint to make the distinctive shadows and ripples that make her works of art look so real . (Left) Forman's landscapes are an attempt to capture the beauty of randomly formed icy landscapes. (Right) Forman uses a variety of different techniques, from paint to chalk, to create her vistas . In addition to exhibitions, recent projects include a series of drawings that served as the set design for the classic ballet Giselle, which premiered in October 2012 at the Grand Theatre of Geneva, Switzerland. Ten of the drawings were also used in the set design for House of Cards, a Netflix TV series directed by David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey . Some of Forman's works of art look hyper-realistic, while others are more artistically vivid, but all of them revolve around the same theme . Sometimes the sea takes a backseat in focus to other parts of the picture, like the photo-realistic clouds, and the wind blowing spray into the air . Zaria Forman was formally trained at Skidmore college, and now exhibits extensively in galleries and venues throughout the U.S. and overseas . Each of Forman's pictures are an attempt to capture a unique part of the landscape, where sometimes the icebergs and land masses are the focus, and other times they take a back seat to the ocean . Some of Forman's pictures look so realistic you would be forgiven for thinking that they are simply photographs rather than laborious works of art . The artworks all seem to capture a particular theme; cold, made possible by Forman's extensive use of rich, deep, blue coloured paints . Originally from Brooklyn in New York, Forman, led an Arctic expedition to the north west coast of Greenland purposely with the aim of creating art inspired by the dramatic geography . Some of Forman's works of art have been inspired by standing on the shores of the ocean, while others were inspired by the arctic voyage . Forman's mother, Rena Bass Forman, originally came up with the idea but sadly didn't live to see it through . The finger paintings also seem to capture warmer seas, with this particular image looking more like tropical ocean than arctic ocean . Some of Forman's works have gone on sale for around $9,000 in private sales and auctions, and many are advertised on an artwork selling site . In her paintings, Zaria Forman has not only captured the freezing cold areas, but also the time of day, with many pictures depicting different stages of her voyage to the icy seas . This picture, depicting flowing seas disrupting calmer ones, was perhaps inspired by the view from a boat voyage, of the sea rather than a larger vista . Forman in her studio. The paintings are put created on boards placed and affixed against the wall, before they are transformed into works of art . | After training at Skidmore college Zaria Forman now exhibits extensively in venues throughout the United States . Forman, from Brooklyn in New York, was inspired by her mother to capture an arctic expedition through art . In addition to exhibitions, her drawings . served as the set design for the classic ballet Giselle . Ten of the drawings were also used in the set design for House of Cards, a . Netflix TV series starring Kevin Spacey . | 456704aa4f8cb76cc1ac00e8c031d5058510288a |
Six months after Florida teenager Davion Only asked a church full of strangers to help him find a real home - he still has not been adopted. Criticism of Eckerd, the adoption agency charged with finding the now 16-year-old boy an adoptive family has grown - with many potential parents claiming that their phone calls have never been returned. It is even alleged that the teenager who toured morning and national talk shows in September is no longer allowed to speak to the media, has no cellphone or email and has put his Facebook settings on private. Indeed, the young-man - who captured the . heart of the nation with his heart-breaking request last year - has . grown despondent with those who know him saying that he 'just wants the . whole process to be over'. Scroll Down for Video . Still without a family: Davion Only, 16, who has spent his whole life in foster care and begged for anyone to adopt him at his church . The teenager made his stark, simple and emotional plea stood at the pulpit in September at the age of 15 wearing a donated suit and clutching a Bible he had borrowed from his boy's home. 'My name is Davion,' he said. 'And I’ve been in foster care since I was born. He told the congregation: 'I'll take anyone. Old or young, dad or mom, black, white, purple. I don't care. And I would be really appreciative. The best I could be… I know God hasn't given up on me. So I'm not giving up either.' Davion told the church he never knew his real family and that he hoped for a home. He was featured on Good Morning America, Al Jazeera America and in People. Producers flew him in to speak with Barbara Walters in New York on The View. About 10,000 people around the globe called to ask about helping or adopting him. Davion has since moved out of a group home and into a foster one as reported by the MailOnline in December, but sadly, he still does not have a permanent home or adoptive parents. Now 16 - but still without a mother and father - Davion Only has not been found a permanent home and his former case worker Connie Going (right) said the teen is becoming despondent . Emotional plea: The orphan speaks before St Mark's Missionary Baptist Church to ask if someone would become his parent . Unstable childhood: Davion has been in the foster system his entire life, going from one temporary home to the next . 'Something doesn’t seem right. I pray about it,' said his mentor, Richard Prince, 22. 'He’s changed schools and foster homes, and he’s not allowed to tell me certain things. People want to hear a happy ending, but it’s not too clear what’s going on.' More than 300 people contacted the Times last fall saying they couldn’t get in touch with anyone at Davion’s foster agency, Eckerd. The Tampa Bay Times contacted a sample of 40 of those potential parents. Of the 10 who responded, nine said they had not heard from Eckerd. 'We never received a response. This just breaks my heart,' wrote Marcy Theobald of Georgia to the Tampa Bay Times. 'What is wrong with the system?! Everyone deserves to be treated fairly and loved.' 'No one has contacted me regarding Davion,' Shelly Bergman wrote from Ohio. 'I just don't understand it, and I sure hope he does not lose his faith because of that. This sweet young man just wants to be loved by someone. Bring him here, I will welcome him with open arms.' Inspiring: Davion Only at 15 with his case worker Connie Going in September before nervously making his speech before the congregation . Simple wish: Davion Only, the orphan whose plight gripped the nation, attended many interviews across the country about his plight . The paper were also contacted by Sharron Furno and her husband in Michigan. They run a license foster home and have four other adopted children. Out of the 40 people the Tampa Bay Times contacted, she was the only one who had received any response from Ekcerd. 'I received an email stating that they were only considering families in the state,' Furno wrote. 'We offered to pay for his transportation. I offered to go to Florida and spend time with him. Why leave him there when they haven't been able to give him permanency in years?' An Eckerd spokeswoman said Davion was meeting with prospective adoptive families and that the process would take time. Some adoptions experts say they are not surprised that an adoption has taken so long, but other children’s advocates are appalled. 'The poor kid has got to be wondering, ‘Why, out of all those people, does no one want me?’ Dr. Gregory Keck, a psychologist who has spent 25 years working with foster and adopted children said. Davion started to look for his mother, whom he . had never met, using his birth certificate at a local library in June. He found her obituary and discovered that La-Dwina Ilene 'Big Dust' McCloud (left) had died aged 55 in Clearwater just weeks before . Biological family: Carolyn Ware, grandmother of Davion Only, spent time with her grandson over Thanksgiving . Wanted him back: Davion's aunt Doris Barnes, pictured left in October, said Davion belongs with his biological family. She said she would take him in - but is not allowed because she has a criminal record . According to Florida's Department of Children and Families, adoption of a child from foster care should take between nine months and a year. 'I know Eckerd is committed to finding Davion the forever family that is perfect for him,' said interim Secretary Esther Jacobo. 'The relationship cannot be forced or rushed.' In December it seemed that the teen was on the brink of a breakthrough. He was introduced to a prospective adoptive family. Eckerd spokesperson Terri Durdaller said, 'He has moved from his group home placement at Carlton Manor to a foster home where he is enjoying getting to know the family. Davion is excited to be spending the holidays with a perspective adoptive family.' However, still the teenage boy has not been found a permanent home. Durdaller said some media had misunderstood. 'The foster and adoptive parents are two separate systems,' said Durdaller. Adorable: Davion, pictured at the age of seven, has been in foster care in Florida for his whole life . 'He is in a foster home, things are more stable there. Sometimes a foster parent will adopt. But he is meeting with different perspective adoptive families. We have 15 years of his life to catch a family up on. That takes time.' Indeed, some adoption experts said that they aren't surprised that Davion still hasn't been adopted. 'It isn't easy,' said Bob Rooks, who directs Explore Adoption, Florida's adoption referral center in Jacksonville to the Tampa Bay Times. 'Of all those 10,000 calls, probably only a small percentage already were qualified to adopt. And at his age, he has his own opinions. Maybe his needs were different from what those families wanted.' Connie Going, the Eckerd adoptions specialist who took Davion to church back in September has called him 'a forgotten child.' 'I have to believe everything is going to be okay in the long run,' said Going. 'I think he just wants it all to be over.' Looking for a family: 15-year-old Davion spoke to the church congregation about how badly he wanted a family to care about him . Indeed, Going now alleges that Davion is not allowed to speak to the media anymore - despite the huge publicity tour that Eckerd allowed him to go on in September. For their part, Eckerd said that Davion has so far met with four prospective families and that they are hopeful the right fit has been found. 'It was decided that one family has the skills needed to care for him,' she wrote in an email to the Tampa Bay Times. 'All qualified families that did express an interest in adopting Davion were explored,' Durdaller wrote in February. She won't reveal where the family lives, or anything about them. | Davion Only, 16, - who captured the heart of the nation last year has still not been adopted . It was thought that he was being placed with a prospective family before Christmas - but he is no longer with them . Adoption agency Eckerd has been accused of ignoring many offers from couples to adopt Davion . The Florida teenager, has bounced around foster care his whole life . Despite a huge media blitz last year - the teen is now allegedly not allowed to speak to the media . Has no cellphone, email account or public Facebook profile . | a52fd48cbe5fb079f8aa3ed73ae6bfef6164aaee |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 10:31 EST, 23 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:45 EST, 23 October 2013 . It may be called 'Scotchy Scotch Scotch' but, alas, there is no actual alcohol in the new Ben & Jerry's that has both cult comedy lovers and sweettooths alike licking their lips. In celebration of the long-awaited release of Will Ferrell's Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (released in theatres Dec. 20), the iconic ice cream makers today launched a special flavor dedicated to San Diego's most hapless TV anchor, Ron Burgundy. The latest in a recent spate of special edition releases, the creamy concoction is described as 'butterscotch ice cream with ribbons of butterscotch swirl' and is completely whiskey-free. Fans of the original, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy - which has become one of the most-quoted comedies since its release in 2004 - will be quick to recall the name of the dessert comes from a memorable scene from the gag reel where Ferrell's beloved character is drinking on-air. Scroll down for video ... A nice cold pint: The new butterscotch flavor Ben & Jerry's pays homage to Anchorman character Ron Burgundy (played by Will Ferrell - right) and his well-known love of whiskey . Stellar return: The whole cast including (L-R) Paul Rudd, Will Ferrell, David Koechner and Steve Carrell will be reunited in Judd Apatow's Anchorman 2, released on December 20 . 'I love scotch. Scotchy scotch scotch. Here it goes down, down into my belly,' Burgundy says. Officially unveiled this morning at New York City's Pier 36, Burgundy 'himself' is quoted on the press release as saying he hopes Ben and Jerry's consider his other suggestions. 'Malt liquor marshmallow, well liquor bourbon peanut butter and cheap white wine sherbert,' the release said. The launch event featured a performance by Nutty The Water-skiing Squirrel, another standout from the original movie, followed by the appearance of a ice cream truck that had been converted into a Channel 4 news truck. 'You stay classy, San Diego': About 20 Ron Burgundy lookalikes launch Ben & Jerry's new 'Scotchy Scotch Scotch@ at New York's Pier 36 today . Inside the truck were a scrum of Ron Burgundy lookalikes that served samples of the ice cream. 'We especially enjoyed the sampling process over the last several months to find the perfect Scotchy Scotch Scotch flavor,' said Ben & Jerry's marketing head, Lisa Sholk. Ben & Jerry's are no strangers to bringing out limited batches, although their most recent efforts have been based on enforcing civil rights. Earlier this year in Australia, the company renamed their legendary Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough to 'I Dough, I Dough' as a stance on marriage equality. Since their launch 35 years ago, Ben & Jerry's have become known for such advocacy. Making a statement: Earlier this year Ben & Jerry's Australia renamed their Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough - arguably the company's most-famous flavor - to 'I Dough, I Dough' as a stance in support of same-sex marriage rights . In 1989 they were one of the first companies in the US to extend full benefits to unmarried partners of their partners, including those of the same sex. In 2009 the flavor known as 'Chubby Hubby' was renamed 'Hubby Hubby' to celebrate gay marriage legalisation in Ben & Jerry's home state of Vermont. Then last year in the UK they launched Apple-y Ever After' to support same-sex marriage legislation. 'As a social justice company, we’re immensely proud to support an issue that embodies so many of our core values,' Ben & Jerry's brand champion Kalli Swaik said at the time. 'We champion equality above all else, believing that everyone in a loving relationship should be able to mark their commitment to each other in marriage, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.' 'Scotchy Scotch Scotch' will be available at Ben & Jerry's stores for the next few weeks. Watch Anchorman 2 trailer here . | 'Scotchy Scotch Scotch' hits shelves today ahead of Anchorman 2, which is released Dec. 20 . Customers warned that, despite the name, there is no whiskey or alcohol in the butterscotch ice cream . The tongue-in-cheek move follows company's recent stance supporting same-sex marriage rights . | 45e1c00c5b7eb0d32bd9e6b2de53a20dcb0276b8 |
(CNN) -- If you're African-American, you might have gotten "the talk." It's a discussion, usually with parents, about how they need to behave around police officers because of the color of their skin. On social media, many African-American users have used the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, to share their stories about "the talk." On Twitter and Facebook, the hashtags #IGotTheTalk and #IGaveTheTalk have been trending topics since the shooting on Saturday. In the posts, users recount being taught, . "Me and my brothers literally had to rehearse talking to the cops w/ my parents," wrote a Twitter user with the screen name @HeDoinTooMuch. Other tweets have included: . . The Ferguson shooting has played out in a big way on sites like Twitter, where information spreads at lightning speed. Full coverage: Ferguson shooting . News of two journalists being arrested while covering the aftermath of the shooting went viral on social media Wednesday, focusing attention on what some in the town have compared to a war zone. And on Twitter and elsewhere, the "hacktivist" group Anonymous was working to expose the name of the officer who shot Brown before police revealed his identity on Friday. In a related viral trend this week, students and other social media users -- many of them black -- shared images of themselves with their hands up in the air. At Howard University, students at a back-to-school housing meeting posted a photograph in which hundreds stood in the "hands up" position, which witnesses say Brown had done to show he was unarmed before he was shot. In a Facebook post Thursday, the historically black university in Washington said that it was "proud of our students who have united peacefully to show they will not stand for the senseless violence anymore. Thank you to the Howard University Student Association for leading and organizing this display of solidarity." Complete coverage of the Ferguson shooting and protests . | Ferguson shooting prompts #IGotTheTalk trend . Minorities on social media share being told how to behave with police . Eighteen-year-old Michael Brown was killed by police while unarmed . Authorities say shooting came after a convenience-store robbery . | 392056e3f7d70934fe0440f069a2b33c414ab706 |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . A Toronto mother who had received a shocking anonymous letter last week urging her to have her 13-year-old autistic son euthanized has issued a forceful response, highlighting the importance of tolerance. Karla Begley and her family were left reeling after receiving a disturbing, hate-filled missive from a neighbor in Newcastle, Canada, informing her that the noise her special needs son, Max, was making while playing outside terrified her 'normal' children. On Wednesday, Miss Begley, whose . 15-year-old son, Jack, is also on the autistic spectrum, and she herself . is wheelchair-bound due to multiple sclerosis, gave an interview to a blog about special needs children called Love That Max to address the controversy in a constructive way. Eloquent answer: Karla Begley, pictured here . with her son Max in 2010, took to a blog about special needs children to . deliver a response to a vile letter a neighbor had sent her complaining . about the boy's sounds . Words of wisdom: Mrs Begley (left) urged people to be more understanding towards special needs children like her son (right), whom she called a blessing . ‘I will not stoop to an insulting . level,’ she said. ‘What I have to say is about tolerance, . acceptance and respect for kids with special needs.’ Begley . addressed the noise complaints cited in the callous letter she had . received, saying that all children make noise, not just ones with . special needs. In the case of her son, the sounds he emits is the only . way he can express himself. ‘If . Max's sounds bother someone, I'd hope that person would let us know in a . respectful way,’ Begley said. ‘Give us a chance to handle it instead . of being cowardly about it.’ The . 44-year-old mother went on to say that she prefers when people openly . address her son’s disability, like kids in the neighborhood who come up . to her and ask why Max talks ‘funny.’ ‘The . parents are embarrassed. But if the mom isn't going to talk properly to . a child, or teach him that kids with autism are not contagious, I . will!’ she told the blog. ‘It's important to help kids understand . and not be fearful from a young age. ‘I'll . tell children, "He has autism and he has trouble with speech, but you . can say 'hi' to him." And then I'll have Max say 'hi' back and it's OK. I'd rather kids ask than grow up to be the sort of people who write . nasty letters about autism!’ The . mother further explained that just because her son cannot express . himself in words like most people, or take part in activities like other . children his age, he still understands everything and enjoys life. Nothing good to say: An anonymous neighborhood mother wrote this letter to the grandmother of a severely autistic teen in Newcastle, Canada . Sadness and anger: Max's mother Karla Begley was in tears as she read the hateful letter directed at her son . ‘People with special needs are people first. They have every right others do,’ she argued. ‘Instead of glares, I wish people would give smiles. Instead of anger toward parents, I wish people would be more understanding. ‘Trust me, if there's behavior ruining someone else's day, it's ruining mine and I want to deal with it!’ In the disgusting missive the Begleys had received, the cowardly author called Max a useless burden to his family. But his mother has insisted that in fact her son has been a blessing to her. ‘I think I'm lucky: How many mothers still have their 13-year-old son wanting to sit on the couch, have mommy time and cuddles, and not be afraid to show love and affection?’ Karla Begley said. The mother added that while her son’s future is uncertain due to his disability, she and the rest of the family are unfazed by the possibility that Max may never have a wife or a job. ‘Everyone has a place in the world,’ she said in her eloquent response. ‘Some people are meant to hold big jobs. Some people make you happy and smile.’ During the summer, 13-year-old Max spends his mornings with his grandmother Brenda Millson in Newcastle. She . says she was shaking after receiving a letter August 16 from an anonymous . neighbor complaining that the noise Max makes outside is 'DREADFUL!' and that it 'scares the hell out of my normal children!' Mrs Millson shared the whole letter with CityNewsToronto. The woman's anonymous letter went beyond the offensive noise complaint into even more repugnant territory, writing that Max is a 'hindrance'. 'Who . the hell is going to care for him? No employer will ever hire him, no . normal girl is going to marry/love him and you are not going to live . forever!' Then she recommended something truly atrocious. 'Personally, . they should take whatever non retarded body parts he possesses and . donate it to science. What the hell else good is he to anyone!' 'Do the right thing and move or euthanize him! Either way, we are ALL better off.' 'Who says that about a child?' Max's mother Karla Begley asked City News. She started to cry as she explained that her secondary progressive multiple sclerosis keeps her from walking and running with her son. 13-year-old Max was diagnosed with severe autism when he was two and he spends his summer mornings at his grandmother's house, usually playing in the backyard . On his side: The neighborhood came out in support of Max after hearing about the abhorrent letter . Since learning about the letter, neighbors of Max's grandmother have come out in a public display of support for the boy in an attempt to out the letter's author. Max's father is worried that the letter might lead to violence against his son. 'A person that's that crazy or demented who would fabricate something like that...it leads me to believe that they're very dangerous,' Jim Begley said, 'and right now I'm scared for my son's safety. If the writer is identified, Max's family plans to press charges. | Karla Begley, 44, was interviewed by a blog about special needs children . On August 16, Max Begley's grandmother got a vile letter complaining about the noise the 13-year-old autistic boy was making . The self-described 'pissed off mother' who penned the letter suggested that Max be euthanized . | a49bd376f3ef20ce644589cd0a502cb7470b21cd |
By . Nazia Parveen . PUBLISHED: . 16:16 EST, 20 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:57 EST, 20 January 2013 . Popular: The nation spends £6.3billion on takeaway hot drinks every year . It’s that little luxury to which we treat ourselves each working day. But all those cappuccinos and lattes add up – to no less than £393 a year, a study has revealed. Over the course of a lifetime, the average consumer will spend £15,725 on takeaway hot drinks. And for the one in ten who need that extra hit of caffeine, the figure is nearer to £30,000. The daily takeaway brew is so vital to many people’s routine that it’s considered a ‘non-negotiable’ treat. However, it seems that the age of austerity is having an effect – 70 per cent of the 2,000 people surveyed claimed that they would try to cut back on their purchases of coffee this year. Some 70 per cent said they would cut down on their coffee intake by simply buying less, while 56 per cent said they would buy smaller drinks. Another factor is the growing popularity of home coffee machines: 22 per cent said that they prefer to make their own cappuccinos and lattes – up from 40 per cent five years ago. Altogether Britain spend £6.3billion on takeaway hot drinks every year, . according to the research by OrSaveIt, a money-saving phone app. Alain Desmier, managing director of . OrSaveIt, said: ‘Millions have made a habit of spending a couple of . pounds a day on coffee, but it soon adds up. ‘Over . the course of the year, drinking coffee from the office rather than . buying it in a shop could add up to the cost of a holiday.’ However, another appliance may be gradually dying out. Demand for kettles dropped by a . massive seven per cent in the past five years, from 8.1 million sold in . 2007 to 7.5 million in 2012. In 2008 nearly 15 per cent or one in seven people bought a new kettle, but by last year that figure had dipped to 12.8 per cent. Overall ownership of kettles has declined from 83 per cent of the population in 2008 to 78 per cent in 2012. On the way out: The kettle is no longer in demand as it faces stiff competition from coffee machines . The electric kettle was invented by Russell Hobbs in 1956, but became popular in homes from the early 1960s onwards. Other . small kitchen appliances falling out of fashion include smoothie makers . and juicers, George Foreman-style health grills and deep fat fryers. Ownership of kettles has fallen from . 83 per cent of the population in 2008 to 78 per cent last year, say . analysts Mintel. Instead people use coffee machines, one-cup hot water . dispensers and even heating water in microwave ovens. | Research revealed coffee drinkers will splash out £15,725 in their lifetime . Ten per cent of Britons conceded the figure could be closer to £30,000 . Some prefer to make coffee at home using coffee machines to save money . | 2ee9c9722fd471724625d7fc98cd542493d185aa |
By . Beverley Morrison . Former Nazi SS officer Erich Priebke during his first trial for the massacre of 335 Italians. His death and plans for burial sparked violent protests in Italy . Nazi war criminal Erich Priebke, . whose death sparked violent protests and a legal dispute over what to do . with his body, has been secretly buried in an Italian prison cemetery. The . 100-year-old died last month while living under house arrest for his role in one . of the worst massacres of the Second World War in Italy. A report in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica said Priebke was buried in a grave in a fenced-off area of the cemetery, ‘marked by a wooden cross in the underbrush.’ Scroll down for video . But the paper did not give details on . where the cemetery is located, adding, that it was, ‘the only bit of . Italian land where Priebke's death can go back to being just a death, . not Nazi symbolism.’ Rome city authorities banned any burial out of fear it could become a Nazi pilgrimage site. The Vatican issued an unprecedented . order barring any Catholic church in the city from holding a funeral . mass for the war criminal. Argentina, where he had lived in exile and wanted to be buried, would not take the body either. An attempt by the Italian authorities . to hold a funeral for Priebke sparked rioting. Protestors surrounded . the car which was carrying the body at the church of Lefebvriani. So Priebke’s body was taken in the middle of the night in a grey station wagon to a military airport near Rome for safekeeping. In a secret operation it was driven . up the motorway for a couple of hours, before, ‘as dawn approached, the . coffin was unloaded and loaded onto another car," before being driven . into "a mountainous area,’ La Repubblica rerported. 'Even if we cannot reveal the location of his grave, the public should know that the affair has been brought to a close.’ Erich Priebke in his Nazi SS officer's uniform during the Second World War. Born in Henningsdorf in Germany, even his hometown did not want him back for burial . Nicknamed the ‘Butcher of the Ardeatine Caves,’ Priebke always insisted that he had only ever obeyed orders. The 335 victims of the massacre - mainly men and boys - were executed in March 1944 with a bullet to the neck. The slaughter was in retaliation for an attack by the resistance movement on SS soldiers. Priebke managed like many Nazis to escape to Argentina at the end of World War II, evading the 1948 trial in Rome of other perpetrators. Because of his age and ill-health he was allowed to serve out his life sentence at the home of his lawyer after being extradited from Argentina, where he lived a free man for nearly 50 years. The Nazi war criminal, whose body has lain in limbo since he died two weeks ago, was finally interred after his lawyer claimed a deal was struck to bury him in a secret location. His family and friends had refused requests by authorities to have him cremated and buried at sea like Osama bin Laden. Former SS captain Priebke was serving a life sentence for the 1944 massacre of the Ardeatine Caves. The slaughter outside Rome of 335 men and boys was a reprisal for an attack on Nazi police by resistance fighters. His birth town of Henningsdorf in Germany said they could not accommodate him, and even Argentina, his adopted homeland refused to take back his body, saying it ‘would be an affront to humanity.' Former Nazi SS officer, Erich Priebke, left, surrounded carabinieri (Italian military police) during his first trial in 1996 and then, right, during his trial in 2002 in Naples. Talking of his part in the the massacre, he claimed he was only obeying orders . | Former SS officer interred in hidden corner of prison cemetery . Only a wooden cross and a number mark the grave under some bushes . Italian authorities feared grave would attract Nazi sympathisers . | f6c670b36de003491601d45acd99bfca7b3d8162 |
David Cameron made the extraordinary claim yesterday that North Korea could attack Britain. The Prime Minister said he knows Communist dictator Kim Jong-un has access to missiles that can hit the UK. The threat showed that Britain must keep its Trident nuclear deterrent to combat ‘nuclear blackmail’, he said. Scroll down for video . Threat: David Cameron stands next to Lieutenant Commander Neil Lamont RN during his visit to the Vanguard Class Submarine HMS Victorious on patrol off the west coast of Scotland . Warning: David Cameron speaks with Commander John Livesey RN on the Vanguard Class Submarine HMS Victorious off the west coast of Scotland. He has insisted that Britain must renew it nuclear deterrent . Defence: The UK has four Vanguard-class submarines each armed with Trident missiles . David Cameron described dictator Kim Jong-Un's behaviour as 'worrying and threatening' But his claims were immediately . disputed by experts who say North Korea does not have missiles that can . reach Europe – and cannot mount nuclear warheads on them either. And they sparked comparisons with the claims made by Tony Blair to justify invading Iraq ten years ago. Mr Blair produced a ‘dodgy dossier’ on Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction. It falsely claimed that . Iraq could hit British targets with chemical weapons in just 45 minutes . and was used to fuel the rush to war. Hackers broke into Pyongyang’s social media sites yesterday and posted a picture showing leader Kim Jong-un with a pig’s snout. North Korea uses its Uriminzokkiri website’s Twitter feed and Flickr stream to send out regime propaganda, such as photos of Kim Jong-un with military chiefs. But as tensions rose on the Korean peninsula, these halted yesterday. Instead, one showed a picture of Kim’s face with a pig-like snout and a drawing of Mickey Mouse on his chest. Underneath, the text read: ‘Threatening world peace with ICBMs and Nuclear weapons/Wasting money while his people starve to death.’ Another posting said, ‘We are Anonymous’ – the name of a hacker activist group. A statement purporting to be from the hackers claimed that they had compromised 15,000 user records on Uriminzokkiri.com and other sites. The Prime Minister has warned that it would be 'foolish' for Britain to consider abandoning Trident because the country faces an increased threat of nuclear attack from regimes including North Korea . Prime Minister David Cameron speaks with navy personnel during his visit to the Vanguard Class Submarine HMS Victorious off the west coast of Scotland on the day he insisted Britain must renew it Trident nuclear deterrent . David Cameron, speaking with Commander John Livesey RN, said he will firm up his longstanding commitment to a £20billion like-for-like replacement for the submarine-based Trident nuclear deterrent . Mr Cameron spoke out after North . Korea warned the ‘moment of explosion is near’ and declared its military . has been cleared to attack the US mainland with nuclear weapons. As the tense stand-off and war of . words in the region intensified, the US admitted intelligence reports . showed the North could be planning to launch mobile ballistic missiles . in the coming days and weeks. South Korea’s Foreign Minister Kim . Kwan-jin said Pyongyang’s military had moved to its east coast a missile . with ‘considerable range’ that could threaten US bases in the region as . well as Japan. David Cameron boarding a helicopter in Afghanistan in 2009 and on board the Vanguard Class Submarine HMS Victorious off the coast of Scotland . On a visit to Scotland, Mr Cameron . branded Kim Jong-un’s behaviour ‘worrying and threatening’ and said . North Korea has ‘extremely dangerous technologies’. He added: ‘The fact is… North Korea . does have missile technology that is able to reach us. They can hit the . whole of the United States. ‘If they are able to reach the whole . of the United States they can reach the rest of Europe too – they can . reach us too. That is a real concern.’ Maintaining the UK’s submarine-based . Trident nuclear deterrent was a necessary ‘insurance policy against the . risks that there are in the world’, he said. But international security experts last night cast doubt on his extraordinary claim about the threat posed by North Korea. They said Pyongyang’s most powerful . weapon – test-fired in December – has a range of 3,700 miles. It can . reach no further than Alaska, and certainly not the UK. The poster here reads 'safeguard to the death' as the North Korean army said it had approval to attack the United States with its nuclear weapons . Mark Fitzpatrick, director of nuclear . non-proliferation and disarmament at the International Institute for . Strategic Studies think-tank, said: ‘The Prime Minister was certainly . correct as to the growing nuclear threat from North Korea and the . uncertainties of the future. ‘But North Korea does not have any . missile capabilities that could hit Britain and it is difficult to . envision circumstances when North Korea ever would want to attack the UK . even if they could.’ Labour MP Paul Flynn said: ‘North . Korean missiles would be lucky to reach South Korea given their previous . record. There’s as much truth in this claim as there was in the claim . that Iraq could hit British interests in 45 minutes. ‘This is clearly utter fiction and wild exaggeration. It is desperate scaremongering.’ While experts do not believe North . Korea has the capacity to strike at the US mainland, American bases in . South Korea, Japan and the Pacific island of Guam could be within range . of Pyongyang’s conventional missiles. North Koreans hold posters of their previous leaders, Kim Il-sung, left, Kim Jong-Il . Washington has responded to the . mounting crisis by moving mobile missile defence shields to Guam, while . F/A-18 Hornet fighters are being moved to the Philippines. US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel acknowledged that North Korea is a ‘real and clear danger’. On Tuesday, Pyongyang announced it . would restart a plutonium reactor it shut in 2007. A US research . institute said satellite imagery shows that construction needed for the . restart has begun. Diplomats and regional analysts . believe Kim’s sabre-rattling rhetoric and threats to restart his nuclear . programme could be part of a strategy to gain concessions from other . nations and to win much-needed political credibility among his troops . and people. However, the fear is that the young, . inexperienced and potentially reckless leader is in danger of setting . off a chain of events that could lead to conflict. | Prime Minister will warn it would be 'foolish' for Britain to abandon Trident . He says Kim Jong-Un has access to missiles which could reach Britain . UK has four Vanguard-class submarines each armed with Trident missiles . Cabinet Office is conducting a review of options for replacing Trident . | b0dcfee12dd76de2f3955418667fa0be40ebad9b |
(CNN) -- In calmer days, the two California Department of Fish and Wildlife officers riding in a truck rolling down State Route 38 would have been thinking about squirrel hunting or fishing regulations. But on Tuesday, like everyone else in the mountainous California country known as Big Bear Lake, they were thinking about fugitive ex-cop Christopher Dorner. They were on the lookout for a purple Nissan he might be driving. Two house cleaners told police earlier in the day that a man they thought was Dorner tied them up and took their Nissan. Now police throughout the region, including Fish and Wildlife wardens, were keeping an eye out for it, . They spotted two school buses for the Bear Valley Unified School District barreling down the other side of the highway. Driving close behind them was a purple Nissan. After days of false leads, going door-to-door, searching frozen mountain passes, the officers thought this might be the break in the case. The warden at the wheel hit his brakes, trying to make a U-turn on the narrow pine-lined road. An officer radioed in the message that California law enforcement had been waiting for: We found Dorner. And then he was gone again. Dorner apparently realized he'd been spotted and floored the car, passing the buses and disappearing up the road. It almost worked. The Fish and Wildlife officers passed the buses and -- thinking the Nissan was just around the bend -- kept driving. In reality, the Nissan had turned onto another road, eventually crashing. Sometime later, Dorner came across Rick Heltebrake in a white pickup. Heltebrake instantly recognized the big man as Dorner. "He just came out of the snow at me with his gun at my head," Heltebrake told CNN affiliate KTLA. "He said, 'I don't want to hurt you. Just get out of the car and start walking.' " Heltebrake started walking. By this time, two more Fish and Wildlife vehicles, traveling together, had joined the pursuit. An officer in the first vehicle noticed Heltebrake's white pickup moving fast and erratically down the hill and thought he spotted Dorner in the truck as it passed. But before the first officer had time to warn his colleagues or pick up the radio, Dorner rolled down his window and pumped multiple pistol rounds into the second Fish and Wildlife truck as the two vehicles passed on narrow, twisty Glass Road. One officer got out of the second vehicle and fired multiple rounds from his AR-15 rifle at Dorner's vehicle. Heltebrake, a ranger at a nearby Boy Scout camp, radioed that he heard gunfire. "Ten to 20 rounds maybe," he said. Next, Dorner ditched Heltebrake's truck, ran into the woods and barricaded himself inside a cabin owned by Candy Martin. The home was built, she said, in the 1920s, to give horse-and-buggy travelers between Redwoods and Big Bear a place to spend the night. Long bursts of gunfire broke through the silence, some of it captured by a reporter working for CNN affiliates KCBS and KCAL, on a cell phone. Two deputies were shot. One of them died later at a hospital. Then the shooting apparently stopped. Dorner found himself surrounded by police, who moved in and began to tear down the walls of the cabin. "All right, we're gonna go forward with the burn ... like we talked about," said a voice on a local police scanner frequency. "We have fire in the front, he might come out the back." A single gunshot was heard from inside the cabin. Had Dorner shot himself? Police will not yet say. At about 6 p.m. local time, the cabin was engulfed in flames, as an American television audience watched live images beamed from news choppers. The piercing sound of exploding ammunition was heard coming from inside the flaming cabin. By 11 p.m. local time, authorities entered the smoldering remnants of the cabin to find charred human remains. Is the body Dorner's? Probably. But police are taking no chances. They are waiting for an autopsy to make an announcement of the final determination. CNN's Steve Almasy contributed to this report. | Timeline of Christopher Dorner's final hours from reports by police, reporters and others . "He just came out of the snow at me with his gun at my head," said one man . Dramatic events included a mountain car chase, firefights and a burning cabin . Police scanner voice: "All right, we're gonna go forward with the burn ... like we talked about" | ef290faff5634e6423593a2735f14a5f5c4c1028 |
Monaco have admitted that they wanted to keep James Rodriguez, in the wake of his £60m move to Real Madrid. The World Cup Golden Boot winner has signed a six-year deal with the Spanish giants, but Monaco CEO Vadim Vasilyev has admitted that the club were reluctant to sell the 23-year-old. 'Monaco . are proud to have helped James Rodriguez reveal his talent to the world . as he notably made his mark on the 2014 World Cup in Brazil winning the . Golden Boot,' he told the official club website.VIDEO Scroll down to see James Rodriguez arrive at Real Madrid for a medical . Moving on: James Rodriguez has signed for Real Madrid for a reported £60m . Clean bill: The Colombian star passed a medical at the club on Tuesday morning . Rodriguez only joined the club from Porto last summer, and went on to score nine goals in 34 games as Monaco finished second in Ligue 1. Vasilyev added: 'James is a fantastic player who achieved great things with Monaco and the club had no intention to sell the player. 'However the time came when the solution of a transfer was considered to be the most beneficial solution for all parties.' Quick turnaround: He is leaving Monaco after just a year at the French club . Golden boy: And he is fresh from winning the Golden Boot at the World Cup . | James Rodriguez signs for Real Madrid for a reported £60million . Colombia star agrees six-year contract with Spanish giants . However Monaco club chief admits they were reluctant to sell the player . | dd68224b11b0f159b44b933e1b86896191904d75 |
Missionary: Maud Kells, 75, from Cookstown, County Tyrone, who was shot twice by gunmen as they raided her home in north-east Congo . A British missionary who received an OBE in the New Year Honours List was shot twice by bandits who raided her home in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Gunmen shot Maud Kells, 75, in the shoulder during an armed robbery at her home in Mulita in the north east of the country. A spokesman for her Christian aid organisation, WEC International, said: 'She was stable last night, speaking, recognising people, drinking water. 'She has no broken bones, no major muscles hit and her bleeding has stopped.' Ms Kells, from County Tyrone in Northern Ireland, has worked in the Congo since 1968, initially as a missionary nurse, and has helped train Congolese nurses in five hospitals and 30 health centres. She also conducts bible school teaching, speaks at church services, and supervises construction projects. She was awarded an OBE in the Queen's New Year Honours List for a lifetime's work at the medical centre in the Congo. Although she has previously lived in the Congo for stretches of up to four years at a time, she now spends part of the year there and the other part at home in Cookstown. Politicians in Northern Ireland said they were shocked to hear about the shooting. Ulster Unionist Assembly Member for Mid-Ulster Sandra Overend said: 'Only a few days ago we heard the news that Maud is to be awarded a great honour from Her Majesty the Queen and now today, this terrible news that she has been shot doing her work in the Congo is shocking. 'I am sure that I share this sadness with so many people from Cookstown and across Mid-Ulster. 'Those that know Maud will hope that her usual determination will provide her with strength to recover from this terrible incident.' Ian McCrea, a Democratic Unionist Party Assembly Member for Mid Ulster, said: 'My thoughts and prayers are with Maud Kells tonight as she recovers from being shot twice in the shoulder.' A map shows the location of Mulita, north-east DRC, where Ms Kells was living when she was attacked . Pious: Ms Kells has worked in Congo since 1968, initially as a missionary nurse, latterly training Congolese nurses. She also teaches in bible school, speaks at church services, and supervises building projects . The WEC International spokesman said a primary school had been named after Ms Kells where she works. She is also a well-respected member of Molesworth Presbyterian Church in Cookstown. He said doctors in the Congo were assessing her condition last night and considering whether to send her to Kampala for further treatment. WEC director in Ireland Norman Cuthbert said the news about Ms Kells was very good, given that she could have been more seriously injured. 'Maud is a very, very strong lady. She has a very strong faith, I am sure Maud will recover, although it has been a very frightening experience for her.' | Maud Kells said to be in stable condition with no broken bones or bleeding . She has worked in the DRC as a missionary and nurse since 1968 . She was awarded an OBE in the Queen's New Year Honours List . | c6e58db5b72a5bb9cc4d840d6198ef9799a92d76 |
Gloucester staged a storming second-half fightback at Kingsholm to ignite their Aviva Premiership campaign after an opening day debacle against champions Northampton. The west country club, smashed 53-6 by Saints, trailed Sale 17-6 at half-time after the Sharks ran in tries by wing Tom Arscott, scrum-half Chris Cusiter and full-back Luke McLean. Danny Cipriani had run the show for Sale, playing a creative role in all three touchdowns, but Gloucester were transformed after the break as wing Jonny May and full-back Rob Cook scored tries prior to a late penalty try, while scrum-half Greig Laidlaw kicked 19 points in a 34-27 victory. Yann Thomas and Henry Trinder of Gloucester celebrate a try against Sale Sharks in a 34-27 win . Henry Trinder of Gloucester is tackled by Will Addison of Sale Sthe Aviva Premiership match . It was rough justice on Cipriani especially, who also slotted two conversions and a penalty and claimed a late touchdown that secured two losing bonus points, yet Sale now go into next Saturday's home game against London Welsh having lost their first two league fixtures. New-look Gloucester were at sixes and sevens for most of the opening period as they looked to shake off any lingering effects of a Franklin's Gardens hangover, and Sale did not require a second invitation to compound their misery. Cipriani set up Arscott for an opening try inside two minutes, then further fine work created the attacking spark that enabled Cusiter and then McLean to prosper. There appeared no way back for Gloucester, given Sale's dominance, yet a combination of Scotland international Laidlaw's impressive accuracy and May's elusiveness sunk the Sharks. Ben Morgan of Gloucester touches down for a try as his pack drive the Sale Sharks scrum over the try line . James Hook supported by Jonny May of Gloucester takes on Mark Easter of Sale Sharks at Kingsholm . Gloucester paraded all their major summer signings for Premiership home debuts while Sale handed a first start to Georgian hooker Shalva Mamukashvili in a team captained by flanker David Seymour, as they targeted an immediate riposte after losing at home against Bath seven days ago. And the visitors made a sparkling start, going ahead through a well-executed try that had its origins in poor Gloucester lineout work. Wales hooker Richard Hibbard's overthrow allowed Sale an attacking platform and Cipriani's cleverly-placed kick was gathered by Arscott, who comfortably brushed off tame Gloucester defensive efforts. Cipriani failed to land the touchline conversion attempt, but Sale were on their way despite lock Nathan Hines' early departure through injury, while Gloucester saw flanker Jacob Rowan carried off during the initial flurries. Cipriani was in the thick of things again after Sale absorbed a lengthy spell of Gloucester pressure, backing himself to gather his own kick ahead on halfway and sending a supporting Cusiter sprinting over for an outstanding try. The former England fly-half's conversion made it 12-0 midway through the first period, and there was worse to come for Gloucester as Sale extended their advantage before half-time. Rob Cook of Gloucester touches down in the corner for a try despite the tackle of Tom Brady of Sale Sharks . Gloucester tried to attack through wing May, but when the move broke down and referee Greg Garner penalised the home side, Cipriani again reacted quickest as he eyed space before wing Tom Brady's inside ball allowed McLean a clear run. Two Laidlaw penalties sandwiched the McLean touchdown and Gloucester could have few complaints as they trooped off 17-6 adrift, having conceded 11 tries in just 120 minutes of Premiership rugby this term. The home side were transformed straight after half-time, though, as 11 points in nine dominant minutes hauled them level. Laidlaw added two more penalties, then centre Henry Trinder kicked ahead for livewire May to capitalise on acres of space for a try that put Gloucester on level terms. Sale looked shell-shocke, and they suddenly had it all to do after dominating the first half through Cipriani's excellence. A long-range Cipriani penalty edged Sale back in front, but their defence was unlocked again 16 minutes from time when May turned provider and Cook finished off wide out. Laidlaw's superb touchline conversion opened up a four-point advantage, and then he sealed the deal with a later penalty - his fifth - before he converted a penalty try following relentless scrum pressure to get Gloucester's season up and running, although Cipriani deservedly had the last word when he converted his own try. | Gloucester came from 17-6 down at half-time to beat Sale Sharks 34-27 . Jonny May and Rob Cook score tries for hosts at Kingsholm . Danny Cipriani had been lively for visitors before Gloucester fightback . | dd3b7bb40c71a865c73c9b17f2782df0aa5f573a |
Grand Rapids, Michigan (CNN) -- On November 8, 1965, 48 American soldiers lost their lives during "Operation Hump" after the 400 men of the 173 Airborne Brigade were ambushed by roughly 1,200 Viet Cong fighters. I did not learn about this battle from a history book or teacher in school, but rather a popular country song -- "The 8th of November" by the duo Big and Rich. Whenever someone asks me why I love country music, I think of songs like that one, and Tim McGraw's "If You're Reading This," and the Dixie Chicks' "Traveling Soldier" -- each with lyrics that capture the toll war has taken on this nation's soul. Now, it would be disingenuous of me to pretend a black guy from Detroit listening to country is the norm. It's not, and I know it. But I'm not trying to be something that I'm not. My family is from rural Mississippi and I spent a lot of my childhood playing on the dirt roads south of Greenwood. I have an uncle who has yet to recover from his time in Vietnam. So I know full well the world many country artists sing about: the watering holes, eating fried chicken, going to church, God, war. When Rodney Atkins sings, "these are my people" I think: "yes they are." Obsessions: Crazy about country music . So I am excited to see the crossover appeal of acts such as Lady Antebellum and Blake Shelton. I look forward to seeing Wednesday's Country Music Awards. But I will also tell you I am disappointed that so few artists will sing about the one glaring aspect of life in the country that greatly defines how many Americans view the genre -- and that is race. Scan the singles released over recent decades and it's as if race doesn't exist as an issue despite the South, the home of country music, being the backdrop for the beginning of the civil rights movement. How can so many songs, like "November," be written with such great detail about events that happened 40 years ago, in a country thousands of miles away -- and yet we hear hardly a peep about the battles over race and rights that occurred at the same time on the industry's doorstep? About the battles and conversations that are happening around it still? In 2009, country starlet Taylor Swift won the album of the year Grammy for her CD "Fearless." It would be encouraging to see more of country's songwriters embrace that word and be just that: fearless. Stop telling an abbreviated, sanitized version of their world while there is video from a surveillance camera in Mississippi showing a black man being beaten and eventually run over by a group of white teens who set out looking to attack the first black person they saw. While a word like "plantation" is used to describe the voting practices of black Democrats and "lynching" is tossed around regarding the media's treatment of a black Republican. I can understand the hesitation some white artists may have about approaching this subject. They're fearful of saying something offensive and country radio hates controversy (see Chicks, Dixie). But the truth is that not talking about the unpleasant parts of life in the country do not make them go away. It just allows others to tell your story for you. I've met some amazing people in the country music field: Good folks without a racist bone in their body. But they have seen and heard and lived through some disturbing things. They, too, have a point of view, a story. I wish the music would tell it. Not just for the sake of the artists, but for the millions of white Americans who come from small towns, listen to country music and should not be viewed as social pariahs by the rest of the nation because of it. Acknowledging racism does not perpetuate it but rather exposes the disease where it festers and hides. And just as "The 8th of November" taught me something about the Vietnam War, country music can remind people not to allow the stereotypical few to unfairly define the whole. In 2004, Kenny Chesney released his CD "When The Sun Goes Down," which included a song called "Some People Change." It was never released as a single but the song caught the attention of the duo Montgomery Gentry, who later covered it. The song became a top 10 hit for them in 2006, but not before they massaged the lyrics. Instead of Chesney's original: . His old man was a rebel yeller, . bad boy to the bone, . and say can't trust a color feller, . he judge 'em by the tone of their skin . The duo sang "you can't trust that other feller," softening the language a bit. I'm sure it doesn't seem like a big thing to some, but I know some still refer to blacks as "colored" or worse. So while I applaud the group for going as far as they did, I would have preferred they just told the story like it is, with all the warts, gashes, scabs and wounds. After all, racism is ugly. It's OK to say so. It's OK to sing so. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of LZ Granderson. | LZ Granderson: Country music taught me about war . He says it's strange that country doesn't tell the story of race and civil rights . Granderson: Country music should be like the title of Taylor Swift's CD: "Fearless" Racism is ugly; it's OK to say it, and sing it, Granderson says . | caf1b90ba5093cddd90e79f208eb9d751d1f006a |
Moscow, Russia (CNN) -- The mortality rate in Moscow, Russia, has "doubled recently" because of an extended streak of heat and smog, Andrei Seltsovsky, the head of the city health department, told Russian news agencies Monday. Seltsovsky said that the average daily mortality rate in Moscow is 360 to 380 cases, but "today the rate is around 700." Out of 1,500 slots in city morgues, 1,300 were occupied, he added. The death toll directly attributed to the country's recent spate of wildfires remained at 52, the Russian Health and Social Development Ministry said on its website Monday. Another 62 people across Russia were in hospitals with wildfire-related ailments, and in all, 741 people had sought wildfire-related medical assistance, it said. CNN iReport: See and share images of Russia wildfires . The ministry said 22 out of the country's 83 regions, mostly in central Russia, are affected by wildfires. And no relief is in sight, with temperatures forecast to remain high in central and northwestern Russia through August 20. The Russian meteorological service Roshydromet said on its website Monday that the level of air pollution will remain high in and around Moscow in the coming days. "The air will remain filled with products burning in forest and peat fires, and with toxic emission coming from motor vehicles and industrial enterprises," Roshydromet said. It asked Moscow's industrial businesses to start cutting emissions by 20 to 40 percent from 3 p.m. Monday until 3 p.m. Wednesday to help reduce air pollution. Alexander Frolov, who heads Roshydromet, appeared live on Russian state TV on Monday. He said high levels of pollutants in the Moscow air pose a serious danger to Muscovites' health. "The highest levels were registered on August 7 and 8, with the concentration of particulate dust exceeding the permitted level by 3.4 times. It is very harmful for the human body as it accumulates in it and is virtually not excreted," he said. Frolov said carbon monoxide and ozone levels were significantly higher than the permitted norm. "It can be said that we lived through probably the worst time with very high levels of harmful substances caused, firstly, by exhaust from motor vehicles and industries and, secondly, by forest fires," he said. The Moscow region and the majority of the European part of Russia remain in a zone of high fire risk, Frolov said. According to the Russian index of fire risk meteorological indicators, developed by Roshydromet, most of the European part of Russia is in the fifth, or emergency, risk class for wildfire potential. Forests in the southwest, south and southeast of the Moscow region are particularly fire-prone, primarily because of peat bogs, he said. "As many as 276 wildfires have been extinguished," Russia's emergency ministry told the state media RIA Novosti on Sunday. "Currently, 554 wildfires are raging on an area of over 190,000 hectares," or more than 730 square miles. The dire conditions also are wreaking havoc on agriculture in Russia, Frolov said. "Unfortunately, the forecast is for virtually no precipitation in August," he said. "Precipitation is crucial as we now need to think when to plant winter crops. The situation in many regions is such that so far there is no reason to start planting winter crops, despite the optimal planting time beginning in some regions." Roshydromet forecasts a 30 percent drop in Russia's harvests due to the drought, he said. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced a ban on grain exports last week that will start on August 15 and could last until December 31. At Monday's government meeting broadcast on state TV, Putin said the order was prompted by uncertainty over this year's farm production. A decision on the timeframe for the grain export ban will happen only after the results of the harvest are known, Putin said. Some regions won't be sowing winter grain at all this year, so a swift end to the export ban shouldn't be expected, he said. "Of course, this is a temporary measure, but we are in an extraordinary situation and we have to worry about our own citizens and our own farmers," Putin said. "The question is what the country will be left with in 2011. We don't know what the harvest will be and how much carry-over grain there'll be in 2011." The prime minister said Russia would need 78 million metric tons of grain to support its people this year, but because of the drought, the country might produce only 60 million to 65 million metric tons, forcing it to dip into its "state intervention fund." "One can say that neither we nor our ancestors observed or registered anything like it, in terms of heat, within a 1,000-year period since the foundation of our country," Frolov said Monday. "This phenomenon is absolutely unique. There is no record of such cases." CNN's Maxim Tkachenko contributed to this report . | The mortality rate has doubled in the Russian capital, says Moscow's health chief . Hundreds of people have become sick and more than 50 have died due to wildfires . The Russian government is asking businesses to cut back on emissions . The hot weather isn't expected to let up until after August 20 . | 65660d5d185f493003af3bd1f4596203fe4e291c |
It's one of America's top-selling lip balms, with 130 pots sold every minute worldwide. And now the family behind the distinctive-smelling Carmex ointment have opened the doors of their Franklin, Wisconsin, factory for one of the first times. Paul Woelbing, 58, who inherited the company from his grandfather Alfred, led the Journal Sentinel on a guided tour of the 40,0000-square-foot plant. He revealed it as a pretty 'eccentric' place to work with a giant pipe organ installed on the factory floor. He doesn't play the keyboard, but musicians often stop by to tickle the ivories. Scroll down for video . Peek inside: The family behind Carmex have opened the doors of their Franklin, Wisconsin, factory for one of the first times . Tickling the ivories: Paul Woelbing, 58, who inherited the company from his grandfather Alfred, says it's a pretty eccentric place to work with a giant pipe organ installed on the factory floor . Family business: Carmex is one of America's top-selling lip balms, with 130 pots sold every minute worldwide (pictured, company owner Paul Woelbing) One Carmex employee described it as an 'amazing' sound that wafts throughout the facility as they stack boxes of chap remedy to ship. Woelbing added: 'We've got the space for it and we like music. The employees enjoy it so that's why we built it.' The antique theater organ boasts four keyboards, 32 foot pedals and more than 400 stop tabs for different sounds. It is powered by a 40-horsepower electric motor that's housed in a bunker-like room upstairs along with other mechanical pieces. Whistling as we work: One employee described the organ as an 'amazing' sound that wafts throughout the facility as they stack boxes of ointment to ship . Fast growth: Carmex - which contains menthol and camphor - was invented in 1937 by Alfred Woelbing on a kitchen stove . Iconic: Today the lip salve is sold in 37 countries. No financials are published as it is a privately run brand . The organ's installation began six years ago and Woelbing hopes to get the instrument in full working order by February 2016, when he will turn 60. With a total of 6,000 pipes, it is set to be one of the biggest pipe organs in the country. Carmex - which contains menthol and camphor - was invented in 1937 by Alfred Woelbing on a kitchen stove. The current production facility in Franklin, run by his grandsons Paul and Eric, opened in 1975. Today the lip salve is sold in 37 countries. No financials are published as it is a privately run brand. Speaking further about the family-run operation, Paul Woelbing said: 'We're kind of an eccentric bunch around here . . . And I'm probably the most eccentric.' There are currently around 100 people involved in the Carmex production process, including Paul and his brother. On-site entertainment: A local musician gets to grips with the Carmex pipe organ . Nearing completition: With a total of 6,000 pipes, it is set to be one of the biggest pipe organs in the country . | The family behind the distinctive-smelling chapstick have opened the doors of their Franklin, Wisconsin, factory for one of the first times . Paul Woelbing, 58, who inherited the company from his grandfather Alfred, led the Journal Sentinel on a guided tour of the 40,0000-square-foot plant . He revealed it as a pretty 'eccentric' place to work with a giant pipe organ installed on the factory floor . One employee described it as an 'amazing' sound that wafts throughout the facility as they stack boxes of ointment to ship . | be58546a30803f3ee80bd262b392818482eaa784 |
The father accused of throwing his five-year-old daughter to her death over a 60-foot bridge has made his second court appearance after a mental health assessment but refused to speak to the judge. John Jonchuk, 25, is charged with first degree murder after a police officer claims to have seen him parking on Sunshine Skyway Bridge in St Petersburg, Florida, before throwing Phoebe Jonchuk into the river. The cop said he heard the girl scream. Today, Jonchuk was brought before a judge and assigned an attorney, but was immediately escorted out after court marshals said he was refusing to speak. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Charged: John Jonchuk appeared in court for the second time over his daughter's death but didn't talk . In custody: John Jonchuk Jr, 25, (left) has been charged with murder after his five-year-old daughter Phoebe (right) was thrown to her death off a 60ft bridge in Tampa Bay . At his first appearance Jonchuk was asked if he had an attorney and he said he was 'leaving it up to God'. Candlelit vigils for Phoebe have stood in St Petersburg since her death last Wednesday. Child protection services have scrambled to overhaul their policies after it emerged they were alerted to John Jonchuk's delusional behavior hours before his alleged attack. It was one of two red flags waved at government agencies on Wednesday that went ignored. An anonymous caller told Florida's Department of Children and Families on Wednesday afternoon they had seen the 25-year-old driving around in his pajamas looking 'delusional and depressed'. But the call 'did not rise to the level of reasonable cause to suspect' according to the DCF's policies and the report was not investigated. Earlier that day, Jonchuk's attorney had called police warning that he was 'acting strangely' during a custody meeting, calling her 'God' and asking her to read the Bible in Swedish. Devastated: Jonchuck's mother and the girl's grandmother Michelle Lynn Jonchuck, has said she never wants to see her son again and claims she wishes it was him who had died on the bridge . Angelic: Tributes have been paid to Phoebe and a memorial set up for her near the bridge where she fell . Officers went to interview Jonchuk outside daughter Phoebe's day care but they found nothing suspicious. Hours later, Jonchuk was allegedly seen driving at 100mph to the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and throwing five-year-old Phoebe to her death. She was pulled from the water 40 minutes later but paramedics could not resuscitate the child. The DCF has announced that all warning calls will now be investigated within four hours, and a notice will be issued to law enforcement, Click Orlando reported. DCF Secretary Mike Carroll said: 'The horrible nature of this little girl’s murder at the hands of her father is heart wrenching and demands our most immediate and thorough response.' His statement added: 'We have to do more for the children, like Phoebe, who depend on us to protect them.' On Friday, relatives and friends remained gathered around a memorial site for Phoebe. Jonchuk's mother, Phoebe's grandmother, Michelle Lynn Jonchuk has said her son should have killed himself instead. Speaking to Click Orlando, she also paid tribute to the youngster, saying: 'She always had a smile on her face, she loved to dance and she sung. First hearing: Jonchuk said he wanted to leave himself 'in the hands of God' when asked about representation . Troubled relationship: Michelle Kerr, Phoebe's mother who last saw her on Christmas Eve, said Jonchuck gave her restricted access to her daughter. She added that he had been diagnosed with bipolar . 'My angel': Paying tribute to Phoebe, Miss Kerr said: 'She loved to learn new things. She loved to make you smile. She was so animated.' 'I don't forgive him. There is no sense in this. He didn't have to do this to her. I just wish there was one thing God could do was to bring her back.' She added that she was supposed to pick Phoebe up from school on Thursday. The last time she saw her son and daughter together, she said everything was normal. Michelle Kerr, Phoebe's mother who last saw her on Christmas Eve, told the station that Jonchuck gave her restricted access to her daughter. 'She was my angel, I always called her my angel baby. She loved to learn new things. She loved to make you smile. She was so animated,' she said. 'He would only let me talk to her on the phone. He wouldn't disclose his location, so I didn't know where to go.' 'He was very, very bipolar,' she told Tampa Bay News. 'He was Jekyll and Hyde all the way.' Among other medication, Miss Kerr says Mr Jonchuk took regular doses of bipolar pills Seroquel and anti-depressives Zoloft. When they met, she added, Mr Jonchuk was her 'gay friend', until he told her he 'liked women too'. Soon after, Phoebe was born. Mr Jonchuk separated from Miss Kerr, who has MS, following six tumultuous years together - during which police were called numerous times for domestic violence issues. Both had arrest records. On the last night she saw Phoebe, Miss Kerr said she and Jonchuck had a nice evening together, but later on he called child protective services and made a false abuse allegations. She added that he had been diagnosed as bipolar and had been admitted to a mental hospital on several occasions. 'He does the Jekyll and Hyde. It's just something that goes on in his head, he just wasn't wired right. 'He's not mentally stable, but he was mentally stable enough to take care of a child for five years, so he knew what he did. He cried, the detective said.' It has since emerged Mr Jonchuk was interviewed by police earlier that day after 'acting strangely' in a meeting with his attorney to discuss Phoebe's custody - calling the lawyer 'God' then asking her to read the Bible in Swedish. With no fixed abode, the father and daughter have been living with John Jonchuk Sr for two months. But at midnight last night Jonchuk was allegedly seen speeding at 100mph in a PT Cruiser toward the Sunshine Skyway bridge, according to a police report. The officer who spotted the Cruiser gave chase and saw the driver reach the top of Dick Misener Bridge then enter the approach to the Skyway. The car was then seen to stop and a figure emerged, throwing a child over the side of the rail into the water off Boca Ciega Bay. The officer said he heard the girl scream as she fell. Issues: Mr Jonchuk separated from Miss Kerr, who has MS, following six tumultuous years together - during which police were called numerous times for domestic violence issues. Both had arrest records . Scene: Jonchuk was allegedly seen speeding at 100mph in a PT Cruiser toward the Sunshine Skyway bridge, according to a police report . Jonchuk returned to the car and drove south but was stopped by Manatee County authorities about 30 minutes later. He was arrested and has been charged with first-degree murder. Jonchuk also faces charges of aggravated assault with a motor vehicle on a law enforcement officer and aggravated fleeing and eluding police. The girl was found 40 minutes later by divers from Eckerd College and attempts were made to resuscitate her. She was taken to hospital where she was pronounced dead and her mother was informed. At Jonchuk's first hearing on Thursday, Pinellas County Judge Michael Andrews asked him if he wanted an attorney. 'I want to leave it in the hands of God,' Jonchuck said. Arrested: An officer who claims to have witnessed the incident chased Jonchuk and detained him . Behavior: Mr Jonchuk was interviewed by police earlier that day after 'acting strangely' in a meeting with his attorney to discuss Phoebe's custody - calling the lawyer 'God' then asking her to read the Bible in Swedish . Tragic: This is the car seat, recovered from Boca Ciega Bay, in which investigators found the dead child . The judge responded: 'I'm pretty sure God's not going to be representing you in this case. You're going to be standing trial.' Details have since emerged of Jonchuk's 'strange' behavior on Wednesday that prompted his attorney Genevieve Torres to contact police. Torres said she met with John Jonchuck on Wednesday to discuss the custody case for his five-year-old daughter, Phoebe. After their meeting, she was so worried about the father and daughter that she reported the odd statements to police. Officers interviewed Jonchuck and his daughter as he was picking her up from a church day care and both appeared to be in good health. Jonchuck said he didn't want to harm himself or anyone else, the documents said. 'She was smiling and appeared healthy, properly clothed and happy,' according to the documents. A little more than twelve hours later, police said Jonchuck threw his daughter over a bridge. | A caller warned child services John Jonchuk was acting 'delusional' The call 'did not rise to the level of reasonable cause to suspect' Hours before, his attorney warned police of his 'strange' behavior . Officers interviewed Jonchuk, 25, and found nothing suspicious . Hours later, Jonchuk allegedly threw daughter Phoebe, 5, off bridge . He has been charged with first-degree murder and assaulting police officer . Michelle Kerr, the girl's mother, said he had made false abuse allegations . Described how he had been diagnosed with bipolar and was 'unstable' | 82f7d21db1c332589b4127217b8bcd5f6f09d06b |
A well-preserved human forearm that was once displayed near the Antietam National Battlefield as 'The Arm of the Unknown Soldier' is now grabbing the Halloween spotlight at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine. Officials at the Frederick, Maryland, museum call the naturally mummified relic the highlight of their first 'Behind the Screams' Halloween tour of the facility - a 19th century embalming parlor that they dub 'the most haunted building in Frederick.' But they also insist it's not just a marketing gimmick. 'We don't want it to be a scary Halloween prop,' said curator Lori Eggleston. 'This is the arm of a 16-year-old boy who probably died on the battlefield.' Mystery: Smithsonian Institution anthropologists who examined the limb for the Frederick museum were unable to authenticate it as a battlefield relic . The Civil War museum is exhibiting the limb as an example of a typical wound from the clash near Sharpsburg on Sept., 1862, that left about 23,000 soldiers dead, wounded or missing on the bloodiest day of the Civil War. The forearm's skin and tendons appear to have been violently twisted, making it unlikely that the arm was surgically amputated. 'Medical specimens aren't torn off of bodies,' said Eggleston said. However, it's far from certain the arm was torn off in battle. Smithsonian Institution anthropologists who examined the limb for the Frederick museum were unable to authenticate it as a battlefield relic. They say it belonged to an unidentified white male of about 16 - five or six years younger than the average soldier - who probably hailed from New York, Pennsylvania or Ohio, based on forensic evidence of his diet. There is a smaller possibility he was from the local area, the researchers found. Research: Anthropologist say it belonged to an unidentified white male of about 16 - who probably hailed from New York, Pennsylvania or Ohio, based on forensic evidence of his diet . 'The authenticity of the arm as a Civil War relic is highly questionable due to inconsistencies in its collection record with evidence from the analysis, historic documentation, and interviews with local residents,' Karin S. Bruwelheide and Douglas W. Owsley of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History wrote in their report. The muddy-looking arm was donated anonymously to the museum in 2012 after decades on display at a roadside museum in Sharpsburg. The limb purportedly was found two weeks after the battle by a farmer who was said to have pickled it in brine before giving it to a local physician, who supposedly preserved it with embalming fluid. But researchers found no evidence of chemical preservation. Rather, the arm appears to have dried out naturally, either in the open air or under a light soil cover - like the shallow graves in which those slain in battle were hurriedly buried before their remains were moved to the Antietam National Cemetery. 'It is possible that the arm was uncovered during this process. It seems unlikely however, that it would have remained unplaced in a grave,' the Smithsonian anthropologists wrote. Researchers also couldn't verify that the limb was ever in the possession of a local doctor. They cited another account that it was found on the battlefield around 1900 by a local patent medicine dealer named Daniel or Peter Fahrney. Human remains have been found at Antietam as recently as 2009. Whatever its origin, the limb deserves respectful treatment, Eggleston said. 'I think as long as we are respectfully telling the story and using it as an opportunity for people to learn about it, I think we're doing OK,' she said. | A well-preserved human forearm referred to as 'The Arm of the Unknown Soldier' is now on view at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine . The museum is exhibiting the limb as an example of a typical wound from the clash near Sharpsburg in September 1862 . That battle left about 23,000 soldiers dead, wounded or missing on the bloodiest day of the Civil War . | fed22ac0865f7e85e336526580519fd489ccd87a |
The Tories have surged into a four-point lead as Labour’s woes with business hit home with voters, a poll showed last night. Support for the Conservatives rose by six points during the past month following Ed Miliband’s high-profile clashes with business leaders, the ICM poll for the Guardian found. It put the Conservatives on 36 per cent – just a point down from their 2010 general election result – Labour on 32 and the Liberal Democrats on 10. Scroll down for video . Conservative gains: David Cameron’s party has jumped six points to 36 per cent - just one point short of what he achieved at the 2010 General Election . The Tories’ showing is their highest since May 2012 and will cause alarm at Labour high command. The poll, conducted from February 13-15, put support for Ukip down by two points to 9 per cent. It suggests that voters who have flirted with Ukip are beginning to return to the Tory fold ahead of the general election. Support for the Greens also fell by two points. Last night Labour faced fresh controversy over the economy after shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna said British businesses should learn from their counterparts in France. Unemployment in France is almost double the rate in the UK, and economic growth was just 0.4 per cent last year compared to 2.6 per cent here. But Mr Umunna insisted the French model had lessons to offer, particularly on productivity, which is higher than in the UK. David Cameron's Tories have moved four points clear of Ed Miliband's Labour after a surge in support just 80 days out from the election . Tory MP Charlie Elphicke said: ‘People will be alarmed that Labour’s vision for the economy is that we should be more like France – in plain English that means mass unemployment, excessive borrowing and economic failure. Nigel Farage has seen Ukip slip behind the Lib Dems in the polls . ‘Why would we want to go back to where we were five short years ago with Labour?’ Only last week, analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch warned that a weak Labour government was likely to damage investor confidence and economic growth. The giant investment bank told clients that a Labour victory could ‘trigger, ultimately, a deterioration in potential GDP growth. In a nutshell, the UK would look increasingly like France.’ Two other surveys gave Labour a narrow lead. One commissioned by former Tory treasurer Lord Ashcroft put Mr Miliband’s party unchanged on 31 per cent, regaining their lead over the Tory Party which dropped four points to 30. A Populus poll had Labour down one point on 33 per cent, keeping a lead over the Tories, who were unchanged on 31. Mr Miliband launched Labour’s economic strategy with a pledge that all school leavers with the required grades will be offered an apprenticeship. He said all firms winning major government contracts would have to provide apprenticeships, and confirmed Labour would cancel a planned cut in corporation tax to fund a cut in business rates. | David Cameron’s party has jumped six points to 36%, according to ICM . That is one point short of what Conservatives scored in the 2010 election . Labour’s support has fallen one point to 32%, with the Lib Dems on 10% . But a separate poll has Labour one point ahead of Mr Cameron's Tories . | c7491c6c61824a48b3e9ed98b787ea837a2efb37 |
These chocolates might be a delightful surprise for your sweetheart - but a painful one for your bank manager. Confectionery shop Delice has launched a new box of assorted sweets which will set chocolate-lovers back £600. For that princely sum you will be able to savour 240 sweets in a lacquered wooden case inlaid with 24 carat gold or studded with Swarovski crystals. Customers can pay extra to have their name embossed on the lid in real gold. Confectionery shop Delice has launched a box of assorted sweets which will set chocolate-lovers back £600 . The Dubai-based sweet company, founded by Jalel Ghayaza, is very particular about the sources of the ingredients for their produce – using exclusively luxury French brand of chocolate Valrhona in its recipes. Mr Ghayaza insists on using Tunisian almonds and pistachios from Afghanistan. He says that the best walnuts are from the U.S and that Turkey is the only place from which he will source pine nuts. Natural colourings derived from beetroot, chlorophyll and turmeric, are used to create the sweets' vibrant decoration and they are flavoured with unsweetened fruit purée: fresh orange, strawberry, apple. Mr Ghayaza, told The Times that despite the cost of the treats – at £2.50 per chocolate- they have still sold well at the luxury retailer. The Dubai-based sweet company, founded by Jalel Ghayaza, is very particular about the sources of the ingredients for their produce – using exclusively luxury French brand of chocolate Valrhona in its recipes . 'And we have sold a lot of them,' he said. 'Two boxes a day is quite normal. When the children see our counter, they drag their parents across the room to it.' He added that his mother had been his inspiration in embarking upon a career in the confectionery industry. 'I wanted to make sweets like my mother did,' he said. 'So, five or six times a year, I would wake up in the morning and find five ladies with my mother making sweets.' Natural colourings derived from beetroot, chlorophyll and turmeric, are used to create the sweets' vibrant decoration and they are flavoured with unsweetened fruit purée: fresh orange, strawberry, apple . He now employs his mother to show the factory workers in the United Arab Emirates how to adorn the sweets with these complicated floral motifs. The process is laborious and limits the factory to producing 3,000kg of sweets a month. The next dearest confectionery item on sale at Harrods, in Knightsbridge, West London, is the Roberto Cavalli Zebra Praline Chocolate Selection which costs £255.95 for 150 Pieces. And in 2011, a box of 15 handmade truffles, flecked with gold leaf in a Swarovski crystal-covered box went on sale for an eye-watering £190, or £12.67 per chocolate. Those wishing to sample Delice's luxury chocolates needn't break the bank as a box of four costs £10.95. | Delice has launched a box of assorted chocolates which costs £600 . The 240 treats come in a box lined with 24-carat gold or Swarovski crystals . Dubai-based company only use luxury French brand of chocolate Valrhona . Tunisian almonds and pistachios from Afghanistan are carefully sourced . Founder Jalel Ghayaza says they sell around two boxes a day in Harrods . | 534c71a6aef96a5824fd872933967f1c3ab8804c |
(CNN) -- For many people, New Year's Eve can be disappointing -- there's so much hype in the lead-up to the event that when it actually comes around, it often falls short of the mark. Madding crowds, endless taxi lines and even longer lines to get to the bathroom -- it's no wonder so many people choose to stay at home with a good movie and a bottle of bubbles. Howvever, certain destinations around the world offer such spectacular greetings to the new year, that you may want to seriously consider braving the throngs for a front-row seat. Hong Kong . Hong Kong's harbor dazzles for most of the year, but on December 31 it really glows. This year, for the first time, the city's midnight fireworks display will journey across town, beginning at the sea and moving along Victoria Harbour to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai. The best places to view the action? The Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza, the promenade from the Avenue of Stars to Hong Kong Cultural Centre, the promenade at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wan Chai and the area near Central Pier. Come back in February to witness the whole spectacle again as the city prepares to ring in the Chinese New Year (February 10). See also: 10 unforgettable Hong Kong experiences . New York . More than one million people brave sub-zero temperatures to be part of New York's ball drop celebrations on New Year's Eve, with live entertainment this year provided by the likes of Taylor Swift, Psy and the Neon Trees. As it has done for the past 105 years, the ball -- some 3.6 meters in diameter, studded with 2,688 Waterford crystals and lit by 32,256 LEDs -- descends from the flagpole atop One Times Square, dropping 21 meters in 60 seconds. At the stroke of midnight, a blizzard of colorful confetti is released from the rooftops and party-goers are treated to renditions of Auld Lang Syne and Frank Sinatra's New York, New York. Berlin . Berliners warm up on New Year's Eve with the annual Berliner Silvesterlauf: a fancy dress running race that sees participants flipping pancakes along the way. In the evening, party gear replaces gorilla suits as the city descends on the Brandenburg Gate for one of the world's largest open-air celebrations. This year, a stage at Pariser Platz will host international and local musicians, while DJs entertain crowds along the city's "Party Mile": a two kilometer strip of dancefloors, stages and bars behind the Brandenburg. As midnight approaches, a laser and light show brightens the sky, with more than 2,000 fireworks and a New York-style ball drop as the clock strikes 12. See also: The inside guide to Berlin . London . It's been a big year for London, having hosted the Olympic and Paralympic Games as well as the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. And the English capital intends to see out 2012 with more pomp and ceremony. Secure a riverside perch, book a Thames cruise or even better, secure a spot at the London Sky Bar -- the views from here are unmatched -- and count down to the annual fireworks display launched from the foot of the 135-meter-tall London Eye Ferris wheel. With 2013 in full swing, hit the streets for the New Year's Day parade, which will see more than 10,000 musicians, dancers and acrobats take over the town for the 2013 event, themed "Hats Off To London -- Celebration Capital of the World." Edinburgh . Edinburgh is cast aglow at its annual New Year's Eve (Hogmanay) festivities, which kick off on December 30 with a torchlight procession involving more than 25,000 locals. The parade is led by Shetland's Up Helly Aa vikings, with their pipes and drums, and culminates atop Calton Hill with a fireworks display. There's more to come on New Year's Eve, when an expected 80,000 people will take to the streets to sing Auld Lang Syne -- apparently the biggest and loudest rendition of the song in the world -- and party; this year, entertainment comes courtesy of British bands the Maccabees and the OK Social Club, while Simple Minds will headline at the city's Concert in the Gardens. Sydney . If there's a famous Australian who knows how to have a good time, it's Kylie Minogue. And this year, the pint-sized pop star is the creative ambassador for Sydney's New Year's Eve extravaganza. Prepare to party. The entertainment launches early in the day with a series of aerial acrobatic shows, followed by a traditional indigenous cleansing ceremony: smoke flows across the harbor from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vessels, removing the water of negative spirits. There's an early fireworks show for families and a flotilla of boats is transformed with waves of color and light, but the real draw is the midnight fireworks show on Sydney Harbour Bridge. This year's theme is a guarded secret, although according to organizers it will include "exciting new effects." See also: Sydney's craft beer week . Samoa . Samoa went back to the future last year when it skipped a full day, changed sides of the International Date Line and went from being the last country to the first to see in the New Year. If you're visiting the island nation on December 31 this year you can look forward to events that are less about fireworks and fanfare and more about family. After visiting elders, Samoans traditionally welcome January 1 with song and prayer services at large, and loud, choral exhibitions. You won't go hungry -- village banquets are very generous -- or thirsty for that matter, with all festivities beginning and ending with a kava ceremony. Don't forget your ukulele. Kyoto . In Kyoto, New Year's Eve revelers are encouraged to make some noise. Crowds flock to the city's shrines, where stalls sell omikuji (fortune notes) and taiyaki (fish-shaped pancakes with green tea, chocolate or red bean fillings). As the clock ticks toward 2013, temples across town ring large bronze bells 108 times, a Buddhist tradition said to rid humans of earthly desires. The Yasaka Shrine and Chion-in Temple are particularly busy on December 31 -- the latter features a bell that weighs more than 70 tons and takes a team of 17 monks to strike it, crying out "Ee hitotsu" (One more!) and "SÅ . | CNN has highlighted 10 top destinations in which to welcome 2013 . Popular musicians Psy, Taylor Swift and Simple Minds are booked to perform at events around the globe . Revelers in Hong Kong, Sydney and Dubai will be treated to spectacular firework displays . | 6c0f1d0ea04b00eb4df88aa04071df7c898d0ca3 |
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- The man police say was driving drunk when he ran a red light and struck a car, killing a Major League Baseball pitcher and two others has been charged with murder. Fans gather around a memorial for Los Angeles Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart on Friday. Andrew Thomas Gallo, 22, was charged with three counts of murder, driving under the influence and leaving the scene of a crime, the Orange County district attorney's office announced Friday. Los Angeles Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart was among those killed in the crash in Fullerton, California, early Thursday morning. Adenhart was beginning his first full season in the majors and had pitched his fourth Major League game hours earlier. Gallo, whose blood-alcohol level was three times the legal limit, according to police, faces up to life in prison if convicted on all charges. According to the DA's office, Gallo was driving a minivan 65 mph in a 35 mph zone at about 12:35 a.m. Thursday. He was on probation and his license had been suspended after a previous drunk-driving charge. Watch Adenhart's agent describe his friend » . Authorities say he ran a red light and hit the car Adenhart was in, killing the pitcher, 20-year-old California State University student Courtney Stewart and law student Henry Pearson, 25. A fourth victim, 24-year-old John Wilhite, a former baseball player at California State, remained in critical condition Friday. A driver in a third car suffered minor injuries. Adenhart died at UC Irvine Medical Center, where he underwent surgery, according to spokesman John Murray. The Angels' game Thursday night with the Oakland A's was postponed at the direction of MLB Commissioner Bud Selig. "Major League Baseball is in mourning today upon the news of this tragedy that has taken Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart and two others," Selig said in a statement that accompanied the announcement. "Nick was just 22 years of age, with a wonderful life and career ahead of him." After the wreck, Gallo fled the scene, according to the district attorney. He was captured about 30 minutes later. Adenhart pitched in a game against the Oakland A's Wednesday night in Anaheim, California, making what was characterized as a "brilliant effort" despite the Angels' 6-4 loss, according to Major League Baseball's Web site, MLB.com. In his fourth major league start, Adenhart pitched a scoreless six innings, allowing seven hits, three walks and five strikeouts. "The Angels family has suffered a tremendous loss today," Tony Reagins, the team's general manager, said in a written statement. "We are deeply saddened and shocked by this tragic loss. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Nick's family, friends, loved ones and fans." | Driver also faces charges of DUI and leaving the scene . Adenhart, 22, pitched six scoreless innings in Wednesday's game . Three people killed in crash early Thursday in Fullerton, California . | 5b52dd51f097dd9b8440348349ed6688a5b999cb |
By . Sam Webb . PUBLISHED: . 02:41 EST, 24 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:29 EST, 24 September 2013 . Cold War warrior: Ferguson Smith, a spycatcher who brought down some of the USSR's deadliest spies . A decorated Second World War pilot who went on to hunt Soviet spies selling nuclear secrets during the Cold War has died at the age of 98. Ferguson Smith, a former Bomber Command flight lieutenant, spent 36 years in the Special Branch, tirelessly rooting out agents who stole the nation's nuclear secrets during the paranoid and fearful 1950s and 60s. During his incredible career he was also a bodyguard to the Duke of Windsor, the former king, when he visited the UK following his abdication. His most high profile scalp was George Blake, a double agent who worked for the British Secret Intelligence Service and in 1955 and gave British secrets and details of agents to the KGB, crippling MI6's operation behind the Iron Curtain. He was also instrumental in breaking the Portland Spy Ring, which was selling British nuclear sub secrets to the USSR, as well as capturing traitorous naval attache John Vassall and Klaus Fuchs, the German physicist who exchanged details of Britain and America’s atomic weapons programme to Moscow. Neil Root, an espionage expert, said the British public owe a debt of gratitude to Smith, who would have had to be 'brutal' to achieve his aims. 'There was a real fear of Communist spies in the 50s and 60s. 'At the time espionage and counter espionage were about face to face contact, it was all meeting in dirty macs on park benches. It was much more psychological, you had to be able to read people. 'The things you see in James Bond now, that was the kind of stuff happening then. It was much more brutal, people were killed much more quickly,' he told the Daily Mirror. Mr Root said George Blake was a deadly adversary who employed violence and bloodshed to achieve his nefarious aims. Hundreds of spies were killed in the line of duty thanks to Blake breaking their cover. It was a sting orchestrated by Smith in 1961 that led to Blake's capture. He was jailed for 42 years but escaped and fled to the USSR in 1966. Dangerous prey: George Blake (left), considered the most deadly of Russia's agents in Britain. Klaus Fuchs (right), who was sentenced to ten years in prison in 1950 for passing the secret of the atom bomb to the Russians . Smith was born in 1914 in Aberdeen and was the son a grocer. He joined the police and moved to the Special branch in 1936. He joined the RAF in 1941 and flew Lancasters equipped with radar-jamming equipment - a perilous role as the aerial made the aircraft a favourite target of the Luftwaffe. In an assignment that did not reward failure, he survived 30 missions. He was awarded a medal for rescuing two fellow airmen from fighters over Berlin despite being heavily injured. Ferguson Smith (left), with Detective Superintendent George Gordon Smith after the Portland Spy Ring was dismantled . Red menace: John Vassall, a former Admiralty clerk who was jailed for 18 years for spying. He was a British civil servant who, under pressure of blackmail, spied for the Soviet Union . Upon rejoining the Special Branch in the aftermath of the war, he spied on radicals like fascist leader Oswald Mosley and the explorer Laurens van der Post. Smith also protected VIPs, including the former king, who he once bluntly turned down a cash reward from, stating: 'I don't take tips'. In 1996 he was Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and running Special Branch. As well as Blake, the Portland Spy Ring and Fuchs, he also caught John Vassall, who worked as an aide to a Civil Lord of the Admiralty. He was gay and Russian agents used this to blackmail him into stealing thousands of classified documents. After retiring in 1972 Smith, a poetry lover, lived quietly with his wife, Margaret, until her death in 2003. The Portland Spy Ring was a group of Soviet spies operating in England from the late 1950s until 1961 when the five main members of the network were arrested by the British security services. The spy ring was caught after MI5 launched an undercover investigation after being tipped off by the CIA that information was being leaked to the Russians from the Admiralty Underwater Weapons Establishment at Portland, England, where the Royal Navy tested equipment for undersea warfare. Suspicion fell on Harry Houghton, a former sailor who was a civil service clerk at the base, as his extravagant living expenses were far beyond his meagre salary. MI5 was tipped off by the CIA that information was being leaked to . the Russians from the Admiralty Underwater Weapons Establishment, pictured, at . Portland, England . MI5 put Houghton under surveillance and also watched his mistress, Ethel Gee, a filing clerk who handled documents Houghton himself did not have access to. They often went to London, where they would meet a man identified as Gordon Lonsdale, a Canadian businessman. During these meetings Lonsdale and Houghton exchanged packages and MI5 also put Lonsdale under surveillance. They discovered Lonsdale often went to visit antiquarian bookseller Peter Kroger and his wife Helen at their home in Ruislip, northwest London, and the couple were also put under close but discreet watch. In January 1961, Houghton, Gee and Lonsdale were arrested by Special Branch Detective Superintendent George Gordon Smith — as MI5 officers are not authorised to make arrests. Gee's shopping bag contained huge amounts of film and photographs of classified material, including details of HMS Dreadnought, Britain's first nuclear submarine, and the stalling speed specifications of the Borg Warner torque converter. Smith and two colleagues then went to Ruislip to see the Krogers. They found microdots, the photographic reduction of documents in order to make them small enough to be smuggled more easily, hidden inside Mrs Kroger's handbag. The microdots found at the Krogers' home were letters between Lonsdale and his wife, who lived in the USSR with their children. Kroger had used the print in his antique books to hold the microdots and smuggle them between Britain and Russia. These would have also held the intelligence secrets passed on by Houghton and Gee. After an extensive search, spying equipment was found inside the home. This included large sums of money, fake passports, photographic material, code pads for coding messages and a long-range radio transmitter-receiver for communicating with Moscow. Large amounts of money were also found in the homes of Houghton, Gee and Lonsdale. Two days after their arrest all five were charged with espionage at Bow Street Magistrates Court. Their trial began on Monday 13 March 1961 and the jury returned verdicts of guilty for all of the accused. | Ferguson Smith brought down the worst of Britain's Soviet enemies . He was also a decorated WW2 pilot and was bodyguard of former king . His quarry included traitor George Blake and the Portland Spy Ring . | 624b504c2733a0dc3c276ec0c1041bcedc6bd95a |
By . Anna Hodgekiss . PUBLISHED: . 08:59 EST, 2 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 11:49 EST, 2 November 2012 . A healthy schoolboy who had ‘never been ill in his life’ died just weeks after a family camping holiday - during which he developed a rash on his leg. Nine-year-old Sam Leask was rushed to hospital with swollen joints and red marks on his legs and was diagnosed with the auto-immune disease Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP). Soon after his kidneys failed and surgeons battled to save him. Despite undergoing a five-hour operation to remove his badly damaged colon, he died just weeks later. Nine-year-old Sam Leask (pictured with sister Izzy) was perfectly healthy until he suffered a fatal reaction to a rash on his leg . His mother Katharine, 42, said: 'Sam had never been ill in his life. I had never heard of the disease before he was diagnosed. 'Doctors said it normally goes away in time but because Sam has a certain genetic disposition, there were complications and he died. 'It feels like there is a hole, a void, that will never be filled. He was an adventurous and lovely boy and he had so much going for him.' Sam was camping with his family north of Ullswater in the Lake District in July when he developed a rash on his legs and found it too painful to stand up. He was taken by ambulance to the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle where he was diagnosed with HSP, a condition that usually clears in time. While in Yorkhill Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Sam was visited by Olympic silver medallists David Smith (left) and Luke Patience (right) After one night in hospital Sam was . given permission to return home to the village of Kirkmahoe, Dumfries . and Galloway, with Katharine, father Julian, 43, and seven-year-old . sister Izzy. But 12 days later Sam’s condition worsened and he hospitalised, when his kidneys failed. He died on October 13. HSP is a form of blood vessel inflammation and affects small blood vessels in the skin and kidneys, commonly characterised by a purple rash, and affects one in 10,000 people, usually aged between two and 10 - in a minority of cases complications lead to organ failure. An example of HSP, which is a form of blood vessel inflammation. It affects small blood vessels in the skin and kidneys and is characterised by a purple rash . His devastated mother said: 'As we knew that nothing more could be one following surgery we did have a few precious days to make Sam feel so very loved. 'We will forever be indebted to the staff of initially Dumfries Royal Infirmary and subsequently Yorkhill Children’s Hospital, Glasgow, for their tireless efforts in caring for Sam. 'His dignity and peace were ensured until the end and the emotional care and support continues on for us as a family.' Sam’s father Julian added: 'Sam was an adventurous little boy and when he went on holiday, we were more worried about the fact the campsite was near a main road. He loved music and played the double bass. He loved doing impressions and playing football and rugby. He was lots of fun and very bright. We could take him anywhere and he’d get on with everyone; there was nothing he loved more than people. 'He was quite simply a lovely boy.'Sam's parents have set up the Sam Leask Memorial Playground Fund to raise money to improve a children’s area in the Scottish village of Kirkton, near where they lived. For more information: Henoch Schonlein Purpura Support Group on 01733 204368 (10am-2pm) or e-mail: [email protected] . http://localgiving.com/charity/samleask . HSP is a form of blood vessel inflammation and affects small blood vessels in the skin and kidneys, commonly characterised by a purple rash. It affects one in 10,000 people, usually aged between two and 10 - in a minority of cases complications lead to organ failure. It’s not known exactly what causes it, but it often seems to follow on from a viral infection, such as a cold or respiratory tract infection, and is more common in the winter months. HSP is not an inherited disease and is not ‘catching’ so it cannot be passed on from person to person. There are usually three key symptoms. The first is a characteristic rash of raised red/purple spots that do not disappear when you press on them. It can be very alarming as it’s similar to the type of rash you see with meningococcal septicaemia. The rash is caused by tiny blood vessels (capillaries) near the surface of the skin becoming inflamed and damaged, and leaking blood into the skin. An HSP rash is generally found in the lower part of the body – around the buttocks and lower legs. It can also appear on the body, face and hands. Once the rash has fully appeared it doesn’t come and go – it tends to stay for days or even weeks. The second symptom is often abdominal pain, often in the form of stomach cramps, nausea and vomiting. Many children also experience joint pains and blood may appear in the urine. Unfortunately only the symptoms can be treated. But the condition usually settles down within around six weeks and the vast majority of people make a full recovery with no long-term effects. The most serious possible consequence of HSP is kidney damage. For this reason, regular urine tests to monitor kidney function are important, even once someone has recovered. Source: Great Ormond Street Hospital . | Sam Leask developed swollen joints and red marks on his legs . Was diagnosed with the . auto-immune disease Henoch-Schonlein purpura . Little boy had genetic disposition that made his condition fatal . 'He was quite simply a lovely boy,' said his father . | 23d5abfd7759d14c38b340ab56a611320ed5c1e9 |
One night last November, when we arrived home from school, Mummy and Daddy told us that they had heard strange sounds from the area behind our garage. We put on our wellies and ran excitedly across the grass, past the chickens and the pond, to the back of the garden where Daddy parks his car. Balancing on top of the builders' rubble and our old bikes was a pile of sparkly boxes. He's the genuine article: Scott and Megan met the real Santa Claus at his snowy home at the top of the planet . There was a small one labelled 'Megan', a slightly bigger one labelled 'Scott', a bigger one still labelled 'Mummy', and the biggest one of all labelled 'Daddy'. We tore off the silver ribbon and bows and opened the boxes. Each one contained a jumper with a picture on it. Megan and Daddy had a snowman, Scott had a Father Christmas and Mummy had a sparkly penguin. In ours we also had a rolled up sheet of thick paper, tied with a red bow. Daddy unrolled it and read what it said. Written in swirly hand writing, like we'd seen in old books, it said: . Dear Megan and Scott . I hear from my robins that you have been very good this year. I'd like you to come and meet me at the North Pole. Your mummy and daddy can come too. It's very cold, so I have asked my elves to send you some new jumpers to keep you warm. See you soon! Lots of Love, Santa x . For a moment we didn't quite understand. Then Mummy and Daddy explained. We had been written to by the Real Santa Claus, and he'd posted us the boxes and the letter from his home at the North Pole. We've both seen all the helpers who look like Santa that appear around town at Christmas. But this was the Real Santa, really inviting us to visit him in his real home at the real North Pole. And he'd sent us new jumpers to keep us warm. We couldn't believe how lucky we were. Thank goodness we'd been good! A few weeks later Mummy and Daddy drove us to the airport in Bristol. Santa had sent a special plane to collect us and some other lucky children. We were worried it would take a very long time, but by the time we'd watched a film and done some colouring we were there. When we arrived at the airport at the North Pole we had to collect our suitcases, but before they arrived we spotted two elves with pointy ears who had been hiding under the place where the bags go round. Jumpers required for big adventures: Scott and Megan with mum Kirsty and TV presenter dad Martin Roberts . They were very naughty elves, because they kept tapping people on the back and then running away. It made us laugh a lot. All around the airport it was snowy. There was a man dressed in funny clothes that Mummy said everyone would have worn here years ago. He had a pet reindeer. We gave it a carrot. It looked a bit like Sven from Frozen. In fact, everything looked frozen. We got on a coach that took us to the place we were staying. On the way, some different elves made us sing silly songs. After half an hour Mummy and Daddy said the songs were driving them mad. But we carried on singing. Our hotel was made from wood. The room was really big and had a TV. There was a kitchen where Mummy could cook our tea. The best thing was that the room had a balcony that was covered in snow that came up to our tummies. There were lots of other wooden hotels all around, and a place we went to for our breakfast. There was even a supermarket. We didn't think they would have a supermarket at the North Pole - especially one that sold DVDs. That night we went for a ride on special machines that could go through the snow. They were like the ones from Scott's Star Wars LEGO. Daddy drove one, and we snuggled under a blanket in another with Mummy. We went through the car park and out into the forest. Eventually we arrived at a place where there was a bonfire and a man who gave us hot chocolate with marshmallows in it. The grown-ups said we had come to see the Northern Lights, but someone had switched them off. The next day we got on another coach and went to a secret place in the forest. There were loads of fun things to do, like sledging, rides on a sleigh pulled by real reindeer, and a funny show starring the elves. But then we got into a special sledge that was pulled by an elf on a sort of motorbike for the snow. A bit different to a sleigh ride: A snowmobile ride in search of the Northern Lights was also part of the holiday . We went down a path through the trees to a clearing where there was a little wooden house. Inside the house, sitting beside a roaring fire, was the Real Santa Claus. He looked the same as lots of other Santa Clauses we'd seen, but his tummy was even bigger and his beard even longer and whiter than anyone else's. Somehow he knew our names, and he asked us what we wanted him to bring us on Christmas night. He said we could take a picture and gave us an early Christmas present. On the way home we heard Mummy and Daddy say that it had cost a lot, and that the food 'left a bit to be desired'. We didn't understand what they meant. Santa had invited us to come for free. And as for the food - it was better than eating snow, and the hotel was at the North Pole, so the person cooking would have to find things to cook in the forest. And anyway, on Christmas Day we got exactly what we had asked Santa for, so it was worth it. I hope we get invited again this year, although Santa did say that there were a lot of children in the world that he wanted to invite, so it's OK if we don't as we've already had our turn. And if any silly boys or girls at school say 'there's no such thing as Santa Claus', we will know they are fibbing, because we have met him. Santa's Lapland (www.santaslapland.com, 01483 791945) offers a range of holidays to Lapland. A three-day trip to the Finnish village of Saariselka costs from £499 per person, including return flights, transfers, half-board accommodation, private family meeting with Santa and gifts for under-13s, and a full day's activities. | Scott and Megan Roberts, aged 6 and 4, were 'invited' to visit Santa Claus . They visited Father Christmas at his home at the North Pole (well, Lapland) Garish Christmas jumpers were required (well, it can be chilly that far north) | 23f16f488288a662fc2ee2d8b542e341dc2cd116 |
Everton are discussing a potential £150,000 deal for Shelbourne’s young right-back Ryan Robinson. The 18-year-old is tipped to follow in the footsteps of Seamus Coleman who Everton signed for a bargain £60,000 from Sligo Rovers in 2009 and is now rated in the £20million bracket. Robinson has already spent time on trial at Everton’s Finch Farm training ground and Shelbourne boss Johnny McDonnell said: ‘Ryan certainly has a big future in the game. Wanted man: Everton are keen on signing Shelbourne right-back Ryan Robinson (pictured in the orange) On the hunt: Robinson has been billed as the next Seamus Coleman, who shone for the Toffees last season . ‘Everton would have seen a rawness to him but he has a lot going for him. ‘We’d have no problem allowing him to move on to a better level in England. Everton are chipping away with us on Ryan at the moment and we hope to get the deal over the line soon. ‘The initial fee won’t make us millionaires but we’ll make sure it’s heavy on the end of it. It might be better for us to go for the add-ons and everything else.’ Has an eye for it: Everton boss Roberto Martinez likes to blood youngsters into the first team squad . | Coleman signed from Sligo Rovers for just £60,000 in 2009 . Robinson has already spent time on trial at Finch Farm . Roberto Martinez is always keen to blood youngsters in the first team . | 8b2bf5f2c7d516ff68c9b157b51540dc5fe6e5d4 |
By . Rob Cooper . PUBLISHED: . 08:00 EST, 11 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 14:08 EST, 11 April 2013 . Spring flower sellers have had to throw away £50million worth of stock because of the prolonged winter weather that has hit Britain. Freezing conditions have stopped people from tending to their gardens which would normally be filled with colourful plants bought from garden centres. Due to the lack of demand, independent growers and nurseries have been unable to sell on their stock to stores like B&Q and Homebase. Ditched: A truckload of spring flowers are dumped by the Blue Ribbon nursery near Chichester, Hampshire, because the weather has caused a huge slump in demand . Waste: Walter Back, 70, said it has been the worst spring he can remember in 50 years of growing flowers . Thrown out: Some flower retailers are likely to go to the wall because the harsh spring weather has seen sales slump . They are now having to make room for their summer flowers like geraniums, petunias and begonias and have no choice but to bin spring plants such as pansies, primroses and violas by the lorry load. After weeks of bad weather that has kept gardeners inside, forecasters expect spring to finally arrive next week. Temperatures could hit 20C on Sunday and it is likely to remain warm for the following few days. The warmest day of the year so far was March 6 when it was 17.5C in Trawscoed, Wales, but that should be topped this weekend. Met Office forecaster Charlie Powell said that after a mild Sunday, we will finally get a spell of spring weather. 'We won't quite see temperatures of 17, 18 or 19C on Monday but temperatures are still going to be in the mid-teens. It will be something a bit more average for the time of year,' he said. 'It will also be warmer at night so we won't see any return to freezing conditions. There will be some decent spells of sunshine but some showers here and there across the south and west of England and Wales. Three-day forecast: The weather is set to remain wet into the weekend - but on Sunday it will improve and temperatures could hit 20C . On an episode of Gardener's World last month, Monty Don urged viewers not to hurry into their gardens. He said: 'There's no great hurry to sow seed, so don't panic' 'The winds will start to ease and everywhere should be in double figures. 'Tuesday is likely to be cloudy away from the south-east with some rain but nothing heavy.' But the improvement in the weather will come too late for Britain's flower retailers who will have to dump an estimated 30million individual plants because of the bad start to the year. The British Protected Ornamentals Association (BPOA) which represents 170 plant growers in the UK, say that on average each member has lost nearly £300,000 worth of plants. It is a 'double whammy' for nurseries that have also had to pay more in energy bills to heat their huge greenhouses to keep the spring flowers alive for as long as possible. It is feared some growers will be forced out of business by the end of the year even if the sun does come out. There may be more bleak news for growers . in years to come because forecasters warned that Britain's winters are . getting colder because of melting Arctic ice changing global weather . patterns. Late bloom: Alan Shipp, 74, is pictured in his field of Hyacinths, which are finally beginning to burst into flower, much later than in recent years due to the cold weather earlier in the year . Finally flowering: Mr Shipp has been growing hyacinths since the end of World War Two and has 190 varieties on his farm . Figures released yesterday revealed that the temperature in . Aberdeenshire fell to -11.2 degrees Celsius on April 2 – this is the . lowest recorded April temperature for almost 100 years. Met Office climate change expert Dr Julia Slingo is concerned that shrinking sea ice in the Arctic could be responsible. ‘If this is how climate change could manifest itself, then we need to understand that as a matter of urgency,’ she told ITV News. Revelations that planters are facing a bleak spring come after the BBC's Monty Don became embroiled in row with the gardening industry after he recently told viewers of Gardener's World to delay planting until the weather improved. Rubbish: Another truck load of flowers are dumped. An estimated 30million will have to be thrown out nationwide, hitting independent retailers hard . Thrown away: Flower sales have been hit because March was the coldest on record for over 50 years, with an average temperature across the country of just 2.2C . The presenter's statement upset garden centre retailers, who said the advice hampered their sales figures during the spring months. March was the coldest on record for over 50 years, with an average temperature across the country of just 2.2C. Ian Riggs, chairman of the BPOA, said the cold weather has affected growers both big and small. He said: 'Because of the cold weather there have been very low sales of spring plants at garden centres across the country. 'People have just not stepped out into their gardens to fill their borders and pots with primroses and pansies this spring because it has been so cold. Stock clearout: Blue Ribbon Plants, run by Walter Black with his wife Anja and son Robert, has thrown out nearly £100,000 worth of spring plants . Wasted: Spring stock is being thrown out to make way for summer stock after low sales in the first four months of the year . 'The problem is growers would normally have cleared their glass houses of spring plants by now, leaving room for the summer plants. 'But because sales have been incredibly low all of the spring plants are still there. 'They are having to literally bin millions of perfectly good plants that are now in full colour and this dumping has been going on on a large scale across the country. 'It is a double-whammy to the industry because growers are losing money from lack of sales and have also paid more in energy costs to keep those plants in green houses. 'We estimate losses to growers across the country could total around £50million. Last year was bad enough because of the wet summer, but this is a much bigger blow. 'Even if everything went well and our members sold 100 per cent of their summer stock, this year can't be rescued because that income and profit just cannot be recovered. Waste: Independent growers would usually sell their stock to stores like B&Q and Homebase but demand has been down because of the weather . Sea of waste: Mr Back called for garden centres to shoulder some of the cost of the losses in the future . Waste: Mr Back said 'It is incredibly frustrating to have to throw away perfectly good, beautiful flowers' 'I fear some of the businesses may not be with us this time next year. There are some growers who will decide to call it a day.' At one nursery in Chichester, West Sussex, owner Walter Back watched helplessly as lorry-load after lorry-load of beautiful primroses were dumped on to a large pile of perfectly healthy plants that will be turned to compost. Mr Back, 70, who runs Blue Ribbon Plants with his wife Anja and son Robert, has thrown out nearly £100,000 worth of spring plants. He said it has been the toughest time he has experienced since he went into business 51 years ago. Mr Back said: 'It's been a terrible year and the worst I can remember since starting out in 1962. It is the worst I have seen it for such a sustained period of time. 'We've had 12 months of terrible weather. There won't be any businesses left the way it has been going. 'It is incredibly frustrating to have to throw away perfectly good, beautiful flowers.' Rubbish: Although the weather is set to improve this weekend, it will come too late for Britain's plant growers who are being forced to ditch stock that hasn't sold because of the dismal start to the year . Rubbish: These plants are all destined for the bin because they have not sold . He called for garden centres to shoulder some of the cost of the losses in the future. He said: 'At the moment if the garden centres decide they don't want to buy the plants - which they tell us beforehand that they want - they don't have to pay anything at all and we are left out of pocket. 'It would be much fairer if the cost was shared 50/50.' He added: 'The weather seems to be turning now so I just hope it will start to take off.' On an episode of Gardener's World broadcast last month, Monty Don urged viewers not to hurry into their gardens. He said: 'There's no great hurry to sow seed, so don't panic. Don't be in a hurry. You don't have to sow anything at all until April.' Industry experts said Mr Don's comments were inaccurate and wrong. Peter Burks, chairman of the Garden Centre Association, said: 'People who don't know that much about gardening will listen to Monty's comments and wrongly assume they can't plant anything until April - which is not the case. 'There are many plants, such as shrubs, roses and trees, that can be planted well before April, even through the winter and into autumn.' | Independent plant growers could go out of business due to prolonged winter weather . On episode of Gardener's World last month, Monty Don urged viewers not to hurry into gardens . Temperatures set to hit 20C on Sunday and it will stay warm next week with above average April temperatures . Forecasters warn Britain could face more freezing winters because of melting Arctic ice . Demand for spring flowers plummets as it is too cold for gardeners to plant . 30million spring plants are likely to be dumped . March was the coldest for over 50 years with average temperature of 2.2C . | 94a4656a85074b80501c11f80e269223b7e6b379 |
(CNN) -- The photograph was shocking: a hooded detainee, in U.S. custody, standing on a box with electrical wires hooked up to his fingers. Images of abuse at Abu Ghraib changed the discourse on the war, says Abdul Rahman al-Rashed of Al-Arabiya TV. That photo, as well as the others depicting detainee abuse inside Abu Ghraib at the hands of U.S. troops, came to symbolize "America in the eyes of the world at that time," said CNN chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour. "Those pictures unfortunately became symbolic, emblematic of all the troubles that the U.S. faced in the last four years of the Bush administration, particularly given its war in Iraq," Amanpour said. "Beyond that, it caused a great deal of outrage around the world." It was against this backdrop that President Obama reversed course last week, telling government lawyers to object to a court-ordered release of additional images showing alleged abuse of detainees. Military commanders urged him to fight the release of the photos, fearing it would endanger the lives of U.S. soldiers. The photographs first appeared in a report on "60 Minutes 2" in late April 2004, followed by an extensive story on the abuse by award-winning journalist Seymour Hersh in The New Yorker. "It was a big shock," said Abdul Rahman al-Rashed, the head of the Dubai-based Al-Arabiya television station. "It hurt mostly the ones who were for the fall of the Saddam [Hussein] regime. ... It was a heated debate in the Middle East at the time -- whether [the invasion] was the right decision and whether the Americans had bad intentions or not." iReport.com: Did Obama make the right call on photos last week? The fallout was immediate, both overseas and at home. A year into the Iraq war, the American public had grown increasingly uneasy about the direction of the war, and the Abu Ghraib photographs gave anti-war protesters the ammunition they needed to rally around their cause and question Bush administration policies. See Bush administration interrogation tactics » . A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll immediately after the photos were released showed that nearly three-quarters of Americans said the mistreatment of the detainees was unjustified under any circumstances. Bush's overall performance rating sank to what was then the lowest of his presidency, 46 percent. The poll also showed support for the war at its lowest since before it began, with only 44 percent saying they believed it was worthwhile. See some of the disturbing photos (discretion advised) » . It was a blow from which the administration, especially then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, never fully recovered. Amanpour said Obama's presidential victory and big wins by Democrats in the House and Senate were proof of that. "The American people said that they wanted their good name, the name of their country, the influence and credibility of their country's standing, to be restored in the rest of the world," she said. The photos did what a print report could not do. They showed front-and-center what human rights groups had been saying for months: that the Bush administration was abusing prisoners within U.S. custody. Some photos showed naked prisoners piled on top of each other like a pyramid. Another showed a smiling female U.S. soldier giving a thumbs-up next to a naked, hooded prisoner. As a result of the furor unleashed by the pictures, 11 American soldiers were tried and convicted of Abu Ghraib offenses, and some officers were reprimanded. Al-Rashed said he had expected violations in war, but nothing like "humiliating individuals in those kinds of scenes." The Middle East has a "bloody, long, bad record about torture of prisoners," he said, but what happened at Abu Ghraib was even more reprehensible because it undercut America's democratic values. "You talk about democracy, you talk about the respect of individuality, the freedom. ... The prison pictures just really made us speechless." "It was something completely new -- something that we had not seen before in all the dictionary of prisoners and torture and mistreatment. It just weakened the argument completely about the wisdom of getting rid of a regime like Saddam. It made the argument for the other side stronger." The photographs had a direct impact within the Iraq insurgency. Just days after the photos became public, American contractor Nicholas Berg was beheaded -- with his executioners saying they were retaliating for Abu Ghraib abuses. The insurgents posted video of the killing on the Internet for all to see. "The publication of these photos would not add any additional benefit to our understanding of what was carried out in the past by a small number of individuals," Obama said. "In fact, the most direct consequence of releasing them would be to further inflame anti-American opinion, and to put our troops in greater danger." Watch Obama explain reversing course » . The court had ordered the release in response to a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU said the Pentagon had agreed to release a "substantial" number of photographs by May 28. Officials at the Pentagon said the photographs are from more than 60 criminal investigations between 2001 and 2006 and show military personnel allegedly abusing detainees. Obama's decision has sparked a heated debate on what is best for democracy. Marc Thiessen served in the Bush administration from 2001 to 2009, including time as Bush's chief speechwriter. He has said that the "enhanced interrogations" of detainees worked and has opposed the release of the latest round of prisoner abuse photos. Watch more on the photo debate » . "If these photos had been released, within two seconds flat, they would have been up on jihadi Web sites, and al Qaeda would be using them to incite violence," he said. ACLU attorney Amrit Singh disagrees, saying terrorists already have plenty of information "at their disposal to conduct violence." "They can conduct all the violence they want without the release of these photographs," she said. "So to pick on these photographs as the cause of violence, I think, is a grave mistake. There were people who suffered immensely, the victims of torture depicted in these photographs. It's for their sake and for the sake of future victims of torture that these photographs must be aired." She added, "It is essential that these photographs be released so that the public can know the full scale and scope of prisoner abuse that took place in its name." Republican strategist Kevin Madden said Obama sided with national security instead of "the fury of propaganda that would be unleashed against U.S. forces overseas." He said the liberal left is trying to use the photos "as a vendetta against the Bush administration." "And in that process, what they're doing is essentially smearing the country as a country that condones detainee abuse and condones the torture, when in fact we don't," he said. To that, Singh shot back, "But what is the limit of that argument? If gross human rights violations have been committed, do you sweep them under the rug because they will cause outrage?" Al-Rashed of Al-Arabiya said Obama's decision didn't get much play in the Arab world last week, mostly because the alleged abuse isn't as "shocking anymore." "It's not as big news as it used to be," he said. CNN senior political analyst David Gergen, a former adviser to several Republican presidents and one Democrat, said Obama made a wise political decision, even if he upset the left. "I think in these situations, you can't think about who is going to be pleased and who's not. I think you have to think about what's the right decision for the president and assume good policies ultimately make good politics." | Head of Al-Arabiya says 2004 Abu Ghraib photos "just really made us speechless" Christiane Amanpour: Photos "symbolic ... of all the troubles that the U.S. faced" Obama's decision to fight the release of new round of photos sparks debate . ACLU says if more abuses occurred, "Do you sweep them under the rug?" | 0784188f60d61fa6357e580101a5bb83c08d4cc3 |
People play down the amount they consume . It could be the struggling slimmer's best friend - or an irritating nightmare. Clothing fitted with multiple 3D cameras that track everything you put in your mouth is being hailed as the future of dieting . The tiny cameras, embedded in clothes, could help abolish one of the main reasons for failed diets: underestimating the amount of calories we consume . People frequently calculate calories inaccurately when dieting, most likely playing down the amount they consume. And there's no doubt that this 'guestimation' has a detrimental effect to dieters' waistlines. Now though scientists have developed special cameras that can be worn throughout the day - and will document exactly how much the wearer is eating. The 3D cameras keep track of food intake by taking multiple images of the food and calculating how many calories it contains. It works by taking information on the volume of food, using the plate as a scale reference, and by looking at the shape of the food to ascertain what it is. It runs the information through a database to provide an accurate assessment of the number of calories in the dish. The researchers tested the 'eButton' camera device on 17 foods, including burgers, broccoli, fish, ketchup and peanut butter. Ketchup, haddock and ice cream gave researchers problems. Their geometric properties resulted in the largest estimation errors. In the case of the ketchup, it was too small, whereas the ice cream and haddock had concave surfaces, which led to an overestimation of their volumes. The University of Pittsburgh scientists including Hsin-Chen Chen et al, who devised the gadget, say that better understanding of intake - thanks to more accurate information - could lead to better overall health and help tackle chronic conditions such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. a) The eButton contains an (b) electronic circuit board and takes automatic photos of food while (c) attached to the wearer's shirt . They maintain that the current lack of convenient methods for measuring the portion sizes day-to-day calls for technology that can calculate calories without emotional investment. The scientists say that their research, published in Journal of Measurement Science and . Technology, will allow dieters to stop using rough . approximations to gauge how much they are eating - and make better decisions about portion control. The fascinating gadget is still in primitive stages of development. Femail emailed the team at Pittsburgh with queries about how the cameras would compute salad dressings and sandwich fillings, and how they would calculate the calories, but they had not got back to us at the time of publishing. More accurate information could lead to better overall health and help tackle chronic conditions . The technology combines cutting-edge . artificial intelligence and camera technology to create a garment . helping dieters avoid underestimating the number of calories they are . consuming - a leading reason that diets fail. An 'eButton' calculates the three dimensional shape and size of food on the plate to work out the portion sizes of your food. This image is then compared with a built-in library of foods, with just a 3.7 per cent margin of error. (a) original image with user-drawn points (green); (b) dissimilarity map Md; (c) segmentation result . Cameras estimate volume from a photographic image of food . contained on a typical dining plate. Then, the food is segmented automatically from the background in the image. Next, adaptive . thresholding and snake modelling get to work, based on several image . features like colour contrast, regional colour homogeneity and curve . bending degree. Next, a . 3D model representing the general shape of the food (e.g. cylinder or . sphere) is selected from a pre-constructed shape model library. The . position, orientation and scale of the selected shape model are . determined by registering the projected 3D model and the food contour in . the image, where the properties of the reference are used as . constraints. The volume is estimated . from the size of the shape model after registering the 3D shape model to . the 2D food contour (3D/2D model-to-image . registration). Estimation of food portion size in real eating activity using the eButton . SOURCE: Model-based measurement of food portion size for image-based dietary assessment using 3D/2D registration . | University of Pittsburgh researchers present method to estimate calories . Tiny 3D cameras embedded into clothing take pictures and create model . Proposal in latest Journal of Measurement Science and Technology . eButton camera was incorrect 3.7% of the time . Visual estimation is wrong 20% of the time . | d46e845c8747393275d1995f18c8296d224ef7e5 |
(CNN) -- An airliner vanishes over the waters of a Southeast Asia ocean. There's no distress call, no wreckage, nothing but water and questions. So far, the story of AirAsia Flight QZ8501 sounds remarkably similar to that of Malaysia Airlines MH370, which remains missing nearly 10 months after it disappeared from radar screens on a flight between Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Beijing. But it isn't, analysts say. Here are four ways the two incidents appear to differ: . 1. There's not anywhere near as much intrigue. When MH370 disappeared, the plane's identifying transponders appeared to be intentionally shut off, its pilots stopped making radio transmissions and the airliner made a mysterious turn before possibly traveling for hours until all traces vanished. Concerns over hijackings and terror permeated that case, but so far they haven't come up in the AirAsia case. "In this case you had normal communications with the pilot, a line of weather that appeared to be pretty difficult, severe, and he was asking to climb as high as he could to get out of it," said Peter Goelz, an aviation expert and former National Transportation Safety Board official. What role did weather play? 2. The water is much shallower and a commonly used shipping channel, making wreckage easier to find. The area where MH370 is believed to have gone down features extraordinarily deep water. It's also relatively mysterious -- the seabed had never been charted in some places, making getting a fix on the plane's pingers very difficult. In the AirAsia case, if the plane went down in the water, it likely rests in no more than a few hundred feet of heavily traveled ocean, making the task of locating and recovering it much simpler, analysts say. 3. Airlines and governments have learned a lot since MH370. In the hours after the Malaysia Airlines jetliner vanished in March, confusion reigned. When officials spoke at all, the information was often contradictory or confusing, and families of passengers and crew complained about how they were treated. In this case, both government and airline officials appear to be striking a more appropriate tone. Families of AirAsia flight passengers given support through the 'nightmare' AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes tweeted that his "only thought" was the passengers and crew and pledged to do "whatever we can." Malaysian Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein also tweeted his support: "I will be there with you," he said. And the search appears to be getting off to a more efficient start. Indonesian officials quickly posted a search plan, indicating ships from its navy, as well as assets from Malaysia, Singapore and Australia, were being called to help. CNN's Will Ripley said the way Fernandes is handling the crisis is notable. "What he's doing is something that Malaysia Airlines did not do in the initial hours, the initial days and weeks, which is being very transparent, acknowledging this is a terrible situation," Ripley said. Goelz agreed. "In this case, it appears as though the airline and the authorities are in sync, and they really are putting the families first, which is the way to do it." 4. We almost certainly won't be searching for this plane in 10 months. With a more precise fix on where the plane was when it lost contact, a smaller search area and shallower seas, the airliner almost certainly will be much easier to find, said Steven Wallace, former director of the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Accident Investigations. It's "very unlikely that we're going to see anything remotely close to what we saw with Malaysia 370," he said. "It will not surprise me if this airplane is found in the next 12 hours of daylight, because they know to a fairly high degree of certainty where it was, the water is 150 feet deep as opposed to 10- or 20,000 feet deep in the Indian Ocean." | AirAsia investigation unlikely to be as frustrating as MH370 case, analysts say . For one, AirAsia disappeared over shallower, more heavily traveled waters . AirAsia disappearance is lacking many of the mysterious hallmarks of MH370 case . Experts expect plane will be found soon, maybe in next 12 hours of daylight . | 9b8cd86bc8a54314b342bd3d37fcbfdfc3ea1522 |
By . Richard Shears . The former lover of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un has been executed by machine gun amid claims that she had been appearing in pornographic videos. And the brutal killing of singer Hyon Song-wol – and 11 other entertainers said to have performed on the videos – immediately led to speculation that Kim’s jealous wife was to blame. Hyon was among a dozen singers, musicians and dancers from two pop groups who were machine-gunned to death on August 20. Hyon and Kim knew each other as teenagers then had an affair when he was leader . The singer was reported by South Korean newspapers to have been brutally executed by machine gun on August 20 from order's directly from the South Korean leader (pictured above with his wife) Because Kim’s wife, Ri Sol-ju, was . once a member of the same group as the executed singer, North Korea . analysts suggested that she might have given her consent to the . execution. Fuelling the speculation, there have been rumours that her husband was still seeing Hyon. A . source in China, the only ally of the secretive Stalinist nation, told a . South Korean newspaper that the entertainers were arrested on August 17 . for violating laws on pornography. Kim Jong-Un¿s ex-girlfriend, Hyon Song-Wol, was recently seen delivering a speech at a national art workers rally on national television, despite rumours she had been executed . It was reported that they were accused of making videos of themselves performing sex acts and then selling the recordings. Some . of the musicians were also reported to have had Bibles, which are . banned in North Korea, when they were detained and all were treated as . political dissidents. Without . facing trial Hyon, said to be 28, and other members of North Korea’s . most famous pop groups were marched in front of a firing squad and . gunned down while their families and other members of the groups were . ordered to watch. The victims’ families and friends were then taken away to a labour camp, having been found ‘guilty by association’. Married: Kim with his wife Ri Sol-ju, who apparently played alongside Hyon in the Unhasu Orchestra . North . Korea has very little contact with the outside world and it is unlikely . that the reason for the execution will ever be confirmed. But . Professor Toshimitsu Shigemura, a Japanese expert on Korean affairs, . said it was ‘simply not believable’ the entertainers were executed for . making pornography, as they could simply have been made to ‘disappear’ in the prison system. He said: ‘As Kim’s wife once belonged to the same . group, it is possible that these executions are more about Kim’s wife.’ Kim, . 30, who succeeded his late father as supreme leader of North Korea in . 2011, met Hyon ten years ago when he returned from studying in . Switzerland. However, his father, Kim Jong-il, disapproved of the . relationship and ordered the friendship to end. Hyon was rumoured to have been accused of featuring in a pornographic film alongside dozens of singers and dancers . Hyon went on to marry an officer in the North Korean military and is believed to have had a baby. But . rumours circulated that Kim was still secretly seeing her, which might . account for reports that he was seen with a mystery woman in the months . before his marriage to Ri, which was disclosed last July. Ri and Kim . are said to have a baby daughter. Such . is the secrecy surrounding Kim’s life it was initially reported that Ri . was the singer who performed a series of bizarrely titled patriotic . songs that had, apparently, stirred the nation. However, . it was really Hyon who had recorded Footsteps of Soldiers, I Love . Pyongyang, She is a Discharged Soldier and We are Troops of the Party. Ri . was also given credit for Excellent Horse-Like Lady – also known as A . Girl in the Saddle of a Steed – another of Hyon’s songs. Kim . has already displayed the ruthlessness that has made his family the . world’s only communist dynasty, beginning with grandfather Kim Il-sung . at the end of the Korean War in 1953. He . is said to have purged his stepmother from her position as a senior . official in the ruling party to show his absolute power and had a . minister executed by mortar round for showing disrespect by drinking . during the official mourning period after Kim Jong-il’s death. | Hyon Song-wol executed amid claims she appeared in pornograhic videos . A dozen musicians were apparently executed in public by machine gun . Killing led to speculation Kim's jealous wife was to blame . | 56dd49c6ec316894475b269ee4d23a007ef6ba37 |
By . Suzannah Hills . PUBLISHED: . 06:21 EST, 28 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 07:06 EST, 28 November 2012 . Up to 5,000 staff at electricals chain Comet could be out of a job just a week before Christmas after administrators today announced a further 125 stores will close. Administrators Deloitte said it would only keep the remaining 70 stores open until all remaining stock is sold. Deloitte confirmed it was still in talks . with a 'small number' of interested buyers, but said it was necessary . to begin shutting shops in the absence of a firm offer for the whole . business. More closures: Up to 5,000 staff working for the electricals chain Comet face being out of work come Christmas after administrators announced a further 125 are to be closed . Deloitte is also proposing to close the company's distribution centre in Harlow, Essex, this Friday and will cut back office functions at Rickmansworth, Hull and Clevedon. The distribution centre at Skelmersdale will continue to support the store network. The announcement comes after hopes had been raised of a rescue deal after it emerged Southampton-based entrepreneur Clive Coombes was considering making a bid. Joint-administrator Chris Farrington said: 'We remain in discussions with a small number of interested parties and hope that a positive outcome can still be achieved. 'Should any acceptable offers be received for stores we will delay the closure process. Bargain hunters: Shoppers flocked to Comet stores around the country after it was announced the company was going into administration . 'Unfortunately, in the absence of a firm offer for the whole of the business, it has become necessary to begin making plans in case a sale is not concluded. 'If a sale is not possible we would envisage stores to begin closing in December.' Around 5,000 employees work across the 195 Comet stores, with more than 3,000 jobs expected to be affected by today's decision. But it is understood that unless a buyer is found all stores will close before Christmas with all 5,000 employees losing their jobs. Since Deloitte was appointed to work for the electricals chain, some 1,500 jobs have already been axed. Farrington added: 'We remain extremely grateful to the Company’s employees for their commitment and support during a period of concern and anxiety for them. 'All employees will be paid for the work they do while the Company is in administration and I can confirm that any accrued holiday pay, overtime and bonus earned during the Administration trading period, together with the pre-Administration bonus that was owed to employees at the time of our appointment, will be paid to employees as previously stated. 'A dedicated helpline is in place for all employees and the Company is running an Employee Assistance Programme to help those staff made redundant find other jobs.' He added that Deloitte has contacted more than 35 prospective employers who are 'keen' to offer roles to ex-Comet employees. The collapse of Comet marks one of the biggest high street casualties since the demise of Woolworths in 2008 and came a month after the failure of JJB Sports. The group was hit by weak high street trading conditions, competition from online rivals and being unable to secure the trade credit insurance needed to safeguard suppliers. In particular, it was knocked by the lack of first-time home-buyers, who had been key customers for Comet. | The remaining 70 stores will stay open until all remaining stock is sold . Administrators also plan to close the company's distribution centre in Harlow, Essex, this Friday . | bf19328162510c1dbf7ed664f0ccfdc4b70e6ffa |
Hartford, Connecticut (CNN) -- If the World Cup were contested among continents instead of countries, the tournament would have had only two winners in its 80-year history: South America and Europe. And now that the Netherlands beat Uruguay, the only South American team left standing in the final four, Europe has emerged victorious. This year, all the signs in the host country said "SOUTH AFRICA 2010." But for most of June, some graffiti artist painted an ME over the F on each of those banners, for what we were witnessing at the beginning was, in essence, SOUTH AMERICA 2010. South America dominated from the opening kickoff concert, headlined by Shakira, the pop star from Colombia. Even before that, staring vacantly from the covers of countless previews, was the World's Best Player, Lionel Messi of Argentina. And even before that, five-time champion Brazil was expected to do what the Brazilians always do. Like Lance Armstrong, they wear yellow shirts and crush Europeans. For three weeks, Argentina's manager-mascot, Diego Maradona -- rosary wrapped around his fist, like brass knuckles -- strode the touchline like a sub-compact colossus. Refulgent in his shiny suit and diamond earrings, his black-and-white beard ablaze, Maradona carried off soccer balls and very nearly the entire show before his team came up against Germany in the quarterfinals. Steve McManaman, the former Liverpool and Real Madrid midfielder turned ESPN analyst, spoke for many viewers when he said before that match: "I want to see the little lunatic, Maradona, running up and down the touchline, so I've got him to beat the German team on his own." As recently as those quarterfinals, there was the real possibility that all four teams in the semis would be from South America, winners of nine World Cups. Europe, winners of the other nine, might be shut out of this rubber match. Past champions France, Italy and England had crashed out early to varying degrees of domestic condemnation: Calamité (the French), cataclisma (the Italians), catastrophe (the English). But a funny thing happened on the way to the semis: Netherlands came from behind in the second half to beat Brazil. Then the rest of Europe did the same, coming from behind in the second half of the World Cup to assert its dominance over South America, most emphatically when Argentina lost 4-0 to the free-scoring Germans, who suddenly seem to be the new Brazil, soccer's latest thing, its -- how's this for etymological irony? -- bossa nova. And Spain beat Paraguay. As a result, the only South American team in the final four was two-time champion Uruguay. And even then, the most effective Uruguayan at the tournament was a referee. England's Frank Lampard scored an obvious goal against Germany, but play was waved on by Uruguayan ref Jorge Larrionda. In missing the goal, Larrionda almost certainly ushered in a long-overdue era of instant replay or other goal-line technology to assist officials. As for the Uruguay team, it needed a miracle to beat Ghana in one of the most improbable finishes to a sporting event we will see in this century. Asamoah Gyan's penalty kick on the final play of the game rocketed off the crossbar to spare South America one spot in the semifinals among three elite European teams: Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. But Tuesday, time was up for Uruguay. It lost to the Dutch 3-2, helping the Netherlands make its first World Cup title match since 1978. No matter. South America has already secured a World Cup trophy in 2010. The other day at the airport in Bogota, Colombia officials seized a gold-painted replica of the famous Jules Rimet trophy. It was made entirely of cocaine. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Steve Rushin. | Steve Rushin: Cup winners for 80 years have come from South America or Europe . This year South America seemed strong, he says; Brazil and Argentina powerhouses . But Dutch beat Brazil; Germany beat Argentina; Spain in final 4 . Tuesday, Dutch beat Uruguay, the only South American team left standing . | 66b68fc7ff3a3fa397959e47b385324a8f2981d3 |
By . Associated Press . PUBLISHED: . 10:39 EST, 14 August 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 10:47 EST, 14 August 2012 . Most midsize luxury cars -- including the $35,700 Mercedes-Benz C-Class -- performed poorly in a new frontal crash test developed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The new test is designed to replicate what happens when a car strikes another car or a fixed object like a tree or utility pole. The test strikes 25 percent of a car’s front end into a five-foot rigid barrier at 40 miles per hour. The results don’t bode well for non-luxury models, which will be the next to undergo the new test. Insurance Institute crash test results are closely watched by the auto industry and often lead to changes in design or safety features. Good scores are also frequently touted in car ads. Scroll down to see crash test videos . Failed: The Mercedes-Benz C-Class earned the lowest grade for the new test. The collision resulted in significant trauma to the crash test dummy . Deadly: The Audi A4 was another model that failed a partial-frontal crash. Head-on collisions kill about 10,000 Americans each year . Of the 11 cars tested, only the Acura TL, Volvo S60 and Infiniti G earned good or acceptable ratings from the institute, which is funded by insurers. Four cars -- the Acura TSX, BMW 3 Series, Lincoln MKZ and Volkswagen CC -- earned marginal ratings. Four others — the Mercedes C-Class, Lexus IS 250, Audi A4 and Lexus ES 350 — earned poor ratings. Marginal or poor ratings indicate the cars wouldn’t protect occupants very well in a real-world crash. All of the cars tested were from the 2012 model year. Safe: The 2012 Acura TL fared well in this crash test and was one of only two vehicles to earn the highest rating from the IIHS . Back to the drawing board: Many manufacturers base new car designs on IIHS crash tests, in an effort to improve the ratings of their cars . Only three 2012 models of luxury cars fared well in a new partial-frontal crash test by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Here is a list of all 11 models, along with their suggested retail price: . The institute said the new test indicates . that side air bags -- which are designed for direct impact, T-bone . crashes but not for off-center, frontal ones -- may not go off in time . or extend far enough to protect occupants. In three cars -- the BMW, . Mercedes and Volkswagen -- the seat belts spooled out too much after the . crash, causing the crash-test dummies to strike hard surfaces. The . Volkswagen’s door was completely sheared off during the test. Mercedes said it didn’t agree with its . ranking and pointed out that the C-Class is listed as one of the . institute’s top safety picks. Mercedes said the crash test mimics an . unusually severe and uncommon scenario. 'As a leader in automotive safety, we have full confidence in the protection that the C-Class affords its occupants -- and less confidence in any test that doesn’t reflect that,' Mercedes said in a statement. Toyota Motor Co, which owns the Lexus brand, accepted the results. 'With this new test, the Institute has raised the bar again and we will respond to this challenge as we design new vehicles,' Toyota said. But Toyota also noted that it has more top safety picks -- 17 -- than any other automaker. The Insurance Institute said it plans to change its criteria for the top safety picks next year to incorporate the new test. The group said developed the test after years of analyzing real-world frontal crashes, which kill more than 10,000 people annually in the US. Acura TL crash video: . Volvo S60 crash video: . Audi A4 crash video: . Mercedes-Benz C-Class crash video: . | Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Audi A4, Lexus ES 350 and Lexus IS 350 rated 'poor' on crash test . Acura TL and Volvo S60 were the only vehicles to pass the test with the highest rating . Four other models rated 'marginal' and one model was 'acceptable' Luxury cars are the first models test -- more tests on other vehicles to come . | c6ed5320316944035fbb5053eaefff22bc34b0bb |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 12:44 EST, 30 September 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 12:44 EST, 30 September 2012 . As the real referees are welcomed back to the NFL with open arms, one of the dismissed replacements has admitted that they may not have been ready for the job. Jerry Frump, a banker from Chicago who has worked in college football for three decades, was one of the most experienced of the replacements. But during an interview published on Friday, Mr Frump questioned the experience of his colleagues as they jumped up from various levels of college football. Scroll down for video . Making the call: With his 30 years in college football Jerry Frump was one of the more experienced replacement referees who took the field during the lockout . When asked by Time magazine if his crew was ready to be officiating at NFL games, Frump said: 'No, I don't think you could say that.' As for moments like the hotly disputed call that had one referee calling touchdown and another calling interception last Monday night, Mr Frump said the NFL was getting what it paid for. He told the magazine: 'We were pawns. This really became a business deal… This was [the NFL's] choice. They chose to take this position in the negotiation with the union.' But despite his lack of NFL experience, Mr Frump accepted what he believed to be the chance of a lifetime. Botched: The referee on the left, Lance Easley, called the play a touchdown for Seattle, even though most fans believe Green Bay had intercepted the ball. The ref on the right called for a stoppage of play . He told Time: 'If I hadn't done it, somebody else would have. We did the best we could.' The league's referees took the field on Thursday night to a standing ovation from fans after the labor dispute was resolved. Also last week, the NFL replacement ref who signaled a touchdown on the final play of Monday night's Packers-Seahawks game said he stands by his controversial decision which allowed the Seahawks to win 14-12. Lance Easley, a banker from California whose controversial decision is believed to be the event that sparked the resolution, is adamant he made the correct call. 'I don’t appreciate the negative stuff,' said Easley, who feels that he’s had to shoulder the blame for Monday night's decision. Scapegoat: Lance Easley claims that he didn't do anything wrong . 'I didn't do anything wrong,' Easley told TMZ. 'Put any other official who knows the rules and they would make the same call.' Easley said the Packers player who allegedly intercepted the ball never had singular possession because, 'You have to not only have the ball but have either two feet or a body part on the ground, and that never happened.' Although the NFL rulebook cites simultaneous possession is awarded to the passing team, Packers cornerback M.D. Jennings clearly came away with the ball prior to Seahawks wide receiver Golden Tate, who stripped the ball away as he was tangled with Jennings. Easley, who normally refs at El Camino and Pierce Junior Colleges as well as Occidental, all in Southern California, said the replacement refs did what they were expected to do. 'We did a damn good job... for the most part.' His controversial call followed months of an intense labor lockout between the NFL and NFLRA, who finally came to an eight-year agreement on Thursday morning. The stalemate, which saw the NFL's referees locked out since the beginning for the pre-season, had been whittled down to disagreements over 'a little money.' The real refs returned to the field to officiate Thursday night's game between the Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Ravens. Referee Gene Steratore and his seven-man crew received a standing ovation as they walked on the field in their familiar stripes for the first game of Week 4. One fan held up a sign that read: 'Finally! We get to yell at real refs! Welcome back!' 'The other refs just made dumb calls,' said Jessie Riley, a 15-year-old fan wearing an Ed Reed jersey. 'I couldn't stand them. Now we won't get robbed; everything will be fair - hopefully.' The officials ran a mostly smooth and efficient first game back, with no headline-making calls as the Ravens beat the Browns 23-16. Welcome back: A Baltimore Ravens fan holds a sign supporting the return of the real refs prior to the game against the Cleveland Browns . Ready for action: Referee Gene Steratore, right, and back judge Bob Waggoner, left, look around the field before the game between the Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns . NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell acknowledged that Monday night’s disputed touchdown 'may have pushed the parties further along' in the talks. 'Obviously when you go through something like this it is painful for everybody,' Goodell said. 'Most importantly, it is painful for our fans. We are sorry to have to put our fans through that, but it is something that in the short term you sometimes have to do to make sure you get the right kind of deal for the long term and make sure you continue to grow the game.' The deal is only tentative - it must be ratified by 51 percent of the union's 121 members in a vote scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Dallas. The lockout ended after marathon negotiations produced an eight-year agreement to end the lockout that began in June. However, for the Packers, Redskins, Lions and other teams who voiced their displeasure with calls that might have swayed games, the agreement doesn't change their records. Unwanted fame: Lance Easley gestures on the field following his controversial call in the Seattle Seahawks' 14-12 victory over the Green Bay Packers . The commissioner said he watched Monday night's frenetic Packers-Seahawks finish at home. 'You never want to see a game end like that,' he said. The new agreement will improve officiating in the future, Goodell asserted, reducing mistakes like those made Monday and making the strains of the last three weeks worthwhile. Goodell acknowledged 'you're always worried' about the perception of the league. 'Obviously, this has gotten a lot of attention,' he said. 'It hasn't been positive, and it's something that you have to fight through and get to the long term. ... We always are going to have to work harder to make sure we get people's trust and confidence in us.' The dispute even made its way to the campaign trail, with President Barack Obama's spokesman, Jay Carney, calling Thursday 'a great day for America.' 'The president's very pleased that the two sides have come together,' Carney said. | Lance Easley claims he made the right call in Monday night's Packers-Seahawks game . 'Any official who knows the rules would have made the same call' The real referees returned to duty for Thursday's Browns-Ravens game . Refs took to the field to applause on Thursday and signs that said 'Welcome Back' The match passed without incident and the Ravens won 23-16 . | 50351b4caabb624135d60c08c74f219997d0cd3d |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . Last updated at 4:41 PM on 20th October 2011 . Planners who wrongly allowed a millionaire to build an enormous beach hut on Britain's World Heritage Coast have been officially rebuked. Council officials merely rubber-stamped businessman Simon Saunders' application to demolish a timber chalet he had bought for £235,000 on the Jurassic Coast and replace it. Blundering staff only realised that the new hut was twice the size of the original, dwarfing its neighbours, when it was half built and residents in West Bexington, Dorset, complained. 'Monstrosity': Bungling council planners gave millionaire Simon Saunders planning permission to build a beach hut that is twice the size of its neighbours on Dorset's Jurassic Coast . Even then nothing could be done about the 'monstrosity' because it had been given planning permission. Now the Local Government Ombudsman, Dr Jane Martin, has found West Dorset District Council guilty of maladministration causing injustice. The council will have to write letters of apology to all those who complained about its decision. It must also fork out £3,000 on 'countryside projects' in the area to make amends for the blunder. 'By the book': Simon Saunders said no objections were received when he applied for planning permission but that he found the council 'shambolic' The ombudsman said: 'The council failed to spot gross error in plans for a replacement beach chalet at West Bexington. 'Its failure to recognise the true extent of the proposed development at the planning stage has resulted in a building which is incongruous in its setting on the Heritage Coastline and within the designated area of outstanding natural beauty. 'The principal injustice for the complainants is a wider sense of public outrage at the building now permitted in this area.' Mr Saunders, who owns the Ariel Motor Company which makes the Atom sports car, bought the 1930s chalet in 2007 and submitted plans to demolish it and build a new hut. The new chalet is 26ft by 24ft and is made out of oak and red cedar wood. It has a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, sitting room and storage cupboard, running water and drainage. John Aldred, 55, who lives in a bungalow nearby and complained about the chalet, feels the council has been let off lightly. He said: 'It just does not fit in and has completely destroyed the integrity of a lovely little row of chalets. 'I . have heard people visiting saying they have come to see this unusual . hut - it seems as if this once desolate piece of heritage coastline is . now viewed as a bit of a joke.' Mr Saunders said he was not surprised the council had been crticised by . the ombudsman as he found them 'shambolic' to deal with. Dwarfing its neighbours: Planners only realised Simon Saunders' chalet was twice the size of the original when it was half-built, and it was already too late . 'Gross Error': West Dorset Council has been officially rapped by Ombudsman Dr Jane Martin after Mr Saunders was wrongly allowed to go ahead and build the oversized chalet . He said he submitted his planning application for the chalet in good faith and it received no objections from anyone at the time. 'When we put the application in it was all done by the book,' he said. 'We even called the council to see if they wanted to discuss it but they weren't interested. It was approved with no objections locally. 'If people did have objections to it they should have raised them at the time. It was halfway through building the chalet that a guy started to complain and the council came out to measure it and they found it built to plan. 'It has been built 100 per cent to plan, if anything it is slightly undersized. 'We spend a lot of time down there and often pick up litter from the coastal path and the beach. Hopefully the council can spend the £3,000 on cleaning the area up.' | Ombudsman says officials failed to spot 'gross error' in application . Council must apologise and pay £3,000 for 'countryside projects' | 05f52ba5eb42e26656ac9af78e9937d50595cc1f |
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker took a swipe at former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Monday night, boasting that he 'didn't inherit fame or fortune from my family.' The two Republican politicians have emerged as early frontrunners for their party's 2016 presidential nomination. And though Walker promised just three days ago that he wouldn't launch attacks against other primary candidates, that pledge seems to have gone quickly out the window. 'I realize that unlike some out there, I didn't inherit fame or fortune from my family,' Walker told a convention of Christian broadcasters in Nashville, Tennessee. 'I got a bunch of things that were a whole lot better than that.' SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEOS . JAB: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker took a shot at former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Monday night, saying he didn't 'inherit' fame and fortune from a family legacy . PLEDGE: Walker promised just three days ago at a National Governors Association meeting that he wouldn't attack fellow Republican presidential hopefuls . Spokespersons for Walker didn't immediately respond to questions about whether that line was meant as a brushback pitch at Bush, but his opponent with the marquee political name si the only one in the likely GOP presidential field who fits the bill. On Saturday, Walker told reporters at a Washington, D.C. meeting of the National Governors Association that he wouldn't go negative against fellow Republicans during what will likely be a fierce primary season. 'If I (am) a candidate, I’m not going to go out and attack my opponents,' he said, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 'You're not going to hear me say ill will about any of the other candidates,' he said. But on Monday he drew stark lines of comparison between his hardscrabble origins and Bush's privileged upbringing. 'My grandparents on my mother's side raised my mother on a farm where they didn't have indoor plumbing until she went off to high school,' he said. 'And on my other side of the family, my grandfather was a machinist ... for about four decades,' 'I got from my parents and my grandparents the belief that if you work hard, if you played by the rules, here in America you can do anything you want,' said to applause. 'That's a pretty powerful belief. And I think we need to remind more of our young people today that we need to have that in America, right?' Video of his remarks surfaced Tuesday morning courtesy of American Bridge 21st Century, a far-left political action committee that supports likely Democratic nominee Hillary Rodham Clinton. Bush's famous family, and its thorny political legacy, remains the biggest obstacle in his path to the Whtie House. 'Jeb Bush is asking us to do the impossible,' Bloomberg columnist Margaret Carlson wrote Tuesday: 'forget that he’s the son of one president and the brother of another.' | Wisconsin governor has vaulted to co-frontrunner status . Bush brings both political muscle and practical liabilities along with his 'legacy' status as the son and brother of former presidents . Liberal advocacy group's video 'tracker' recorded Walker's remarks Monday night at a convention of Christian broadcasters in Nashville . | 4ab81fcda9f8dbc280b7a50d35af7b12f7cd2f8c |
NASHVILLE, Tennessee (CNN) -- The accused came from all walks of life: Retirees, dads and twentysomethings. An engineer, a business owner and an auto worker. A man in a wheelchair. Men in need of Spanish or Farsi translators. Brett Beasley, with Nashville's Health Department, educates men arrested for trying to buy sex about STDs. About 40 men somberly entered a classroom on a recent Saturday morning. About half of them wore shiny wedding bands. All had tried to buy a prostitute's services and were caught by police. It was their first offense, and a county court referred them to a one-day program called the John School. It's a program run by volunteers and city officials in conjunction with Magdalene House, a nonprofit that works to get prostitutes off the streets. "Prostitution doesn't discriminate," said Kenny Baker, a cognitive behavioral therapist who is the program's director. "Most of these men don't have a prior criminal history, so our goal is to help these folks understand why they put themselves in a bad position, to prevent it from happening again." Set in a church in Nashville, Tennessee, the John School is led by former prostitutes, health experts, psychologists and law enforcement officers who talk to -- and at times berate -- the men about the risks of hiring a prostitute. Prostitution is based on the law of supply and demand. The thinking is: Women won't stop selling sex until men stop buying. So Nashville and a growing number of cities are shifting their focus from locking up suppliers to educating buyers. Across the country, about 50 communities are using John Schools. Atlanta, Georgia, and Baltimore, Maryland, are among dozens more cities that plan to launch similar programs by the end of the year. See where the John Schools are » . "It will make them [offenders] see that this is not a victimless crime, and they are contributing to the exploitation of women," said Stephanie Davis, policy adviser on women's issues at the mayor's office in Atlanta. "It's hurting them, the man, and it's hurting their families and its hurting the community." No comprehensive effort has been made to track the numbers, but experts estimate 1 million to 2 million prostitutes work in the United States. The FBI's 2007 Uniform Crime Report lists about 78,000 arrests for prostitution and commercialized vice, but experts say those numbers are extremely conservative because many sex workers and johns aren't caught. Experts add that easy accessibility to prostitutes and pornography on the Internet are feeding the problem. In most communities, prostitution has been a one-sided battle focused on the women who offer sex. Their customers, when they are arrested, are usually cited for a misdemeanor and fined. By comparison, prostitutes are often charged with more severe sentences and jailed for months, depending on the offense. But in Nashville, the johns' faces are shown on a police Web site. For decades, Nashville battled prostitution by arresting women on the streets and through stings. Still, the problem persisted, irritating business owners and residents. In the early 1990s, Nashville's mayor helped launch the John School with the help of the Magdalene House, public defenders, prosecutors and police officers. Nashville became one of the first major cities in the U.S. to focus on the customers, predominantly men. Only first-time offenders who solicit an adult are eligible for John School. Johns who pick up minors are not eligible and face much tougher sentences. "If you get caught again and you get me, I will guarantee to put you in jail," warned Antoinette Welch, a local prosecutor, in speaking to the men in the class. "I've had men cry to me that they will lose their jobs or their wives, but you're all grown up and you make your own decisions." The men listened carefully as Welch talked about their records; many had not yet told their wives or significant others about their arrest. If the john pleads guilty, pays a $250 fee and completes the course without re-offending, the charge can be dismissed after a year. The money paid by the john goes to Magdalene House; the program doesn't cost taxpayers any money. John School models in other communities may differ. A woman who called herself Alexis, a 35-year-old former prostitute with dark hair and bright blue eyes, spoke to the men as the class came to an end. Four years ago, she left the streets and now works at a factory. By the age of 10, Alexis had learned to barter with sex with her stepfather. In her 20s, she found herself hooked on drugs and selling her body. She was arrested more than 80 times. She was hospitalized after someone shot her on the job. As she told her story, the men were silent. A few blushed, while others stared at the floor. "These gentlemen are no different than I was on the streets," she said. "I think everyone has to look at the void they are trying to fill." One john, a father of two with salt-and-pepper hair, found himself near tears after Alexis spoke. In July, he tried to pick up a prostitute through Craigslist. He said he was depressed and having problems with his wife. "I'm so embarrassed," he said. "These girls are somebody's daughters. I have a daughter." Some evidence suggests that John Schools are working. A study released in 2008 by Abt Associates Inc. for the federal government looked at the John School program in San Francisco, California. It's one of the largest programs in the country; more than 7,000 johns have attended since 1995. According to the study, the re-arrest rate fell sharply after the school was launched, and stayed more than 30 percent lower for 10 years afterward. But critics call John School a slap on the wrist. On Saturday, one john abandoned the classroom. Carol Leigh, a member of the Sex Workers Outreach Project, a group that promotes decriminalizing prostitution in California, said she doesn't believe the program is an effective deterrent. "John School doesn't do that much," said Leigh, who has worked as a prostitute. "The reality is they aren't spending that much time on the johns and they will just go to other venues. This also doesn't target the violent offenders who are the real problem." Melissa Farley, head of the nonprofit group Prostitution Research and Education in San Fransisco, believes johns deserve stronger punishment like longer prison sentences. A recent study by the Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation conducted among johns in Chicago, Illinois, found that 41 percent of them said John School would deter them from buying sex, compared with 92 percent who said being placed on a sex offender registry would scare them from re-offending. Nashville officials said they haven't tracked recidivism rates in their city, but the school's program director said it's probably deterring a third of the offenders in each class. At least one college educated, 47-year-old john's attitude appeared to change on a recent Saturday. After class he wrote, "There is no good part. I would rather be with my wife. This was quick but it wasn't worth it." | Experts say about 1 million to 2 million prostitutes work in the United States . About 50 communities have programs that focus on deterring johns . Nashville's program includes a speech from a former prostitute . The Internet is making it easier for people to buy prostitutes, experts say . | ecaf1ec534ac6324315ff290915ef1b5ba9de36c |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . Last updated at 12:06 PM on 24th June 2011 . A burglar stabbed to death after an attempted break-in was on police bail for another burglary, it has emerged. Earlier this month, John Leonard Bennell, 27, from Hyde, Greater Manchester was arrested in Tamworth, by Staffordshire police on suspicion of burglary. The development comes after Peter Flanagan, 59, was arrested on suspicion of murder yesterday following the incident in Ethel Avenue, Salford. He remains in police custody this morning. Scene: A police officer stands outside the Flanagans' home in Salford . Evidence: Police surround a tent that covers the spot where the man who was stabbed was found . Two other people were also arrested, Neil Flanagan, 27, son of Peter Flanagan, and a woman, 21, but both have been released without charge today. Mr Bennell died from a stab wound to the chest following a 'disturbance' at the house. Four . men, wearing dark clothing and balaclavas, apparently tried to smash their way . through the back door of the terraced house just before midnight on Wednesday. Released: Neil Flanagan was taken into custody by police along with his girlfriend but the pair have been released without charge . The 21-year-old woman made a frantic 999 call for police to come to the property. The victim was then carried away by accomplices as they fled, it is believed. Neil Flanagan was held by police yesterday following the incident but has been released without charge . A . second call alerted officers to the victim a short distance from the . property and he was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police have made an appeal to the public to try to trace his three accomplices. The incident comes after David Cameron promised stronger support for people protecting their property from burglars. We . will put beyond doubt that homeowners and small shopkeepers who use . reasonable force to defend themselves or their properties will not be . prosecuted,' the Prime Minister said. Sylvia . Sharp-Cadigan, Mr Flanagan's next-door neighbour, said: 'I went to bed . at 10 o'clock and about 12 heard all this commotion, all voices. 'There were four police cars outside. 'I came down and said to the police 'What's going on?'. 'He said 'There's been a break-in'. 'I said 'Is anybody hurt?' and he said 'I can't say any more'.' Mrs Sharp-Cadigan, 67, said Mr Flanagan senior lived at the house with his son. Investigation: The house, which has been sealed off, backs on to scrubland. It is believed that the dead man was among a balaclava-clad gang trying to break in . Neighbour Sylvia Sharp-Cadiga revealed she was woken up by the 'commotion' She . described Mr Flanagan as a 'worker' who left early in the mornings and . his son as a 'lad' who had a lot of visitors to the house. She . added: 'We are all upset because it is a quiet little street, we never . have any bother. You don't like it on your own doorstep.' Mr Flanagan’s wife Valerie, who moved out of the home in 2000, was not at the property at the time. She said: ‘It’s such a terrible . incident. How anything like this can happen to anyone I don’t know. My . husband is a great man and a great father – it’s such a shock.’ Mr Flanagan helped Neil run a construction company in Manchester until it was dissolved in 2007. One . neighbour said: ‘They’re just a normal family and I would never have . expected in a million years that they would have been caught up in . anything like this. ‘I’ve known the young lad Neil since he was born and I’ve known the family for years.' Probe: Chief Superintendent Kevin Mulligan outside Swinton police station . Another neighbour said: ‘We’re such a close community around here. 'It’s just so upsetting. Everyone is really surprised and shocked. We all try to support each other. 'Neil is my mate and he’s a hard-working normal young guy. His dad is an honest bloke that has lived in the area all his life.' The . house, part of a cul-de-sac, is next to an open area of scrubland close . to a council recycling centre in the Pendlebury area of Salford. A large area around the house was cordoned off by police tape as detectives continued their investigation. Forensic officers in white boiler suits could be seen entering the property and taking scene-of-crime photographs. Chief . Superintendent Kevin Mulligan, Salford divisional commander for Greater . Manchester Police, said yesterday: 'Clearly this is a shocking incident . and a man has lost his life. 'However, . I can reassure the community that we will thoroughly investigate what . happened last night and do not believe that members of the public are at . risk. 'I would urge anyone . who knows something to speak to officers from the major incident team . and anyone else who has other concerns can speak to my officers, who . will be providing an increased presence to provide the community with . reassurance.' Asked whether . the case raised issues over how far residents can go to protect . themselves, he said: 'We are investigating this matter within the legal . framework as it stands and I don't want to speculate on political . matters at this stage. 'If . somebody was confronted by a burglar tonight, I would tell them to ring . the police and use reasonable force to protect themselves.' Shami Chakrabarti, director of civil . rights group Liberty, said: ‘This is a problem not of law but the public . understanding of it. ‘Of course people facing intruders can use reasonable force to defend themselves. ‘But . saying that “burglars leave their rights at the threshold” is a recipe . for vigilante execution and mistaken killings of family members . returning home after dark.’ Briefing: Mr Mulligan talks to the media outside Swinton Police station, said: 'We are investigating this matter within the legal framework as it stands and I don't want to speculate on political matters at this stage' Patrol: Police had been at the scene since midnight when the 999 call was made . Debate: Civil rights campaigner . Shami Chakrabarti, left, said David Cameron's vow to enshrine homeowners' rights to defend themselves could end up being 'a recipe for vigilante execution and mistaken killings' | Officers found stabbed man after 'gang' dragged him away following 999 call . Police say case will be investigated 'within legal framework as it stands' Civil rights campaigner Shami Chakrabarti: Cameron law could be 'recipe for vigilante executions' | f544cf7f7fe64462c7bbe665b78e7c2df63b5717 |
By . Martin Robinson . PUBLISHED: . 12:25 EST, 27 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 03:26 EST, 28 November 2012 . A stag do company has been accused of encouraging anarchy on Britain's streets as it allows people to take part in a full-scale riot. For £79 participants are handed batons, dressed in body armour and allowed to batter riot shield wielding 'police' while experts show them how to throw petrol bombs. Wish.co.uk say the experience is so popular it is booked up every weekend for the next four months, and is based on an industrial estate close to the spa town of Droitwich, Worcestershire. Scroll down for video . Dangerous: Wish.co.uk allow groups to pay to take part in a huge where they can learn to attack police and evade capture (pictured) The website promises those who take part: 'Noise, fire, smoke and fear are the main ingredients. All hell breaks loose. You’ll come under a barrage of debris'. But local Tory MP Peter Luff says he wants it banned. 'This is completely dangerous and quite wrong. I would hope it is illegal and if it isn't I would like to know why not,' he told MailOnline. Scene: One reveller here is dressed in full body armour before being beaten by police . Training: Experts train them how to use weapons and also recreate scenarios like kettling . 'Not only are they showing people how to instigate a riot, they are showing them how to instigate a riot well. It is utterly irresponsible.' He has already written to the chief constable of West Mercia Police about the issue. Residents in his Mid-Worcestershire constituency are also very upset. One wrote to Mr Luff to say: 'This riot class is really worrying me. It is things like this that make me frightened to leave the house.' Another said: 'Is this really the best thing to teach young people - to go and torch things and loot shops. It is disgusting.' Promise: Participants are told they will have an atmosphere of 'noise, fire, smoke and fear'. Frightening: This image shows one man on the floor being attacked by men with batons . Birmingham MP Jack Dromey, whose own constituency was caught up in the 2011 riots said: 'Rioting is not a game. It is utterly irresponsible and insensitive not least because there are thousands of victims scarred to this day by the memories of what happened in that terrible August week of last year.' The activity's webpage says thrill-seekers arrive and have a full briefing on modern riot control techniques. Then they are trained to use batons and four foot riot shields, see a petrol bomb demonstration and learn the basics of casualty evacuation. They will also be kettled. After lunch they are split into a group - one acting as police, the other as rioters - before a ' pitched battle will ensue'. They then switch sides. The company is being criticised as offering something in bad tastes after Britain's cities suffered days of violent riots in 2011. Tackling that argument a spokesman said: 'We are not inciting a riot, nor are we encouraging anybody . to break the law.' | For £79 participants can use batons, rush police and learn how to throw petrol bombs . wish.co.uk promise: 'Noise, fire, smoke and fear are the main ingredients before all hell breaks loose' 'It is utterly irresponsible, completely dangerous and quite wrong,' local MP Peter Luff says . | a0e9ed6bcbeb0c9afcf30badb4e8b1634e1d3524 |
Sat-navs may help motorists negotiate the trickiest of ring roads and even avoid speeding fines, but the urgent instruction of ‘turn around when possible’ is enough to panic the calmest of drivers. Now, experts claim the instruction could mean more than a navigational nightmare – it could also put a driver and other road users at risk of a serious crash. A survey has revealed that one in seven drivers who use a sat-nav admit making impromptu illegal or risky manoeuvres to correct mistakes when following sat-nav instructions. A survey has revealed that one in seven drivers who use a sat-nav admit making illegal or risky manoeuvres to correct mistakes when following sat-nav instructions. A stock image of a sat-nav is shown . The statistics, gathered by road safety charity Brake and insurance firm Direct Line, suggest that urgent u-turns are not the only danger. The study says that one in 14 drivers have had a near miss and have swerved or braked suddenly to avoid a hazard because they were distracted by a sat-nav. This number rose to 11 per cent of drivers aged under 24, but dropped to below five per cent for motorists older than 35 year’s old. If used correctly, sat-navs are a safer option than a driver looking away from the road to a paper map, but there is fresh evidence to suggest that relying on the gadget can make individuals drive faster, paying less attention to hazards on the road. A total of seven per cent of the 1,000 individuals surveyed admitted to being distracted by the stereo, while 12 per cent said they took their full attention away from the road because of passengers. The study says that one in 14 drivers have had a near miss and have swerved or braked suddenly to avoid a hazard because they were distracted by a sat-nav. Previous studies have found that people are more than four times likely to have a crash (stock image) if they are multitasking while driving . A total of three per cent of people said they were distracted by their smartphone, while two per cent were preoccupied by food and drink. Brake has called on drivers to programme their sat-nav before they set off on a journey and not to fiddle with any gadget while driving. Julie Townsend, deputy chief executive, Brake, said: ‘The sat-nav is there to help you keep focused on driving rather than worry about directions, but it's not there to make all the decisions for you. ‘Driving is an unpredictable activity, so you still need to look at signs, particularly those warning of hazards or speed limits, and watch for people and unexpected problems. ‘For many drivers there is an increasing array of technological temptations that can pose a deadly distraction; it’s essential to resist to ensure you and others arrive safely.’ Research by Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety in Massachusetts has shown that the vast majority of people are unable to multitask at the wheel without their driving being affected. A study of in-vehicle video footage estimated that 22 per cent of crashes could be caused, at least in part, by driver distraction. It also showed that drivers who perform a secondary task at the wheel are two to three times more likely to crash. Other studies have found that more complex secondary tasks, like talking on a mobile phone or texting, increase crash risk even more. Researchers at the University of Western Australia have shown that talking on a phone (hands-free or hand-held) makes drivers four times more likely to have a serious crash, and texting raises the odds further. A study by Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety in Massachusetts found that while drivers may think they can multitask, 98 per cent are not able to divide their attention without a significant deterioration in driving performance. Scientists at Royal Holloway University of London found that using a sat-nav can increase driver speed and reduce observation, but research has also found that using a voice-based sat-nav is safer than using a visual display or paper map. Listening to loud music has been found to slow drivers’ reaction times, and encourages aggressive driving, according to researchers at the Memorial University of Newfoundland. Monash University Accident Research Centre in Melbourne, Australia, found that fiddling with a stereo while driving leads to slower reaction times and more errors such as accidentally lane drifting. Devices such as cruise control, aimed at reducing the driver’s workload, can also have the unintended side-effect of making drivers less attentive and more susceptible to fatigue, a study by the University of Toronto concludes. A total of seven per cent of the 1,000 individuals surveyed admitted to being distracted by the stereo, while 12 per cent said they took their full attention away from the road because of passengers (stock image) Furthermore, drivers who text and talk on a phone while driving are two to three times more likely to crash than those who are concentrating on the road. The charity has called on the British government to regulate the use of built in entertainment and information systems in cars, which show social media updates and traffic warnings on the dashboard, for example. ‘If these devices are used for tasks such as emailing and social media updates while driving, they are potentially as distracting and dangerous as using a mobile phone,’ it said, suggesting tougher penalties for distracted drivers, including much higher fines for those caught using phones. Brake also wants to ban hands-free kits due to recent research highlighting they do not make driving with a phone much safer. | Survey by road safety charity, Brake, found one in 14 drivers have narrowly avoided a crash because they were distracted by a sat-nav while driving . Passengers, and playing with car stereos were found to be distractions . Charity has called on drivers to programme their sat-nav before they set off on a journey and not to fiddle with any gadget while driving . | e5b7cef4e623c0561e6b9c4dc4e671783c2d52f8 |
By . Caroline Graham . Great pretender: Bestselling Bridget Jones's Diary author Helen Fielding set up fake online dating profiles as research for her latest book . Her much-loved creation Bridget Jones is famously unlucky in love – but author Helen Fielding has discovered the formula for dating success: being a ‘bitch’. The bestselling writer has revealed that she set up fake profiles on internet dating sites – and found that a nastier persona attracted more male interest. As research for her latest book, Fielding set up two accounts: one featuring a photograph of a woman in a sensible sweater who loved to read and cook; the other called ‘SuperLuckyBitch’ who had a sexy photograph and a description which ‘portrayed her as a real bitch’. Fielding revealed: ‘So I had SuperLuckyBitch who was glamorous but really horrible and it said on her profile, “You’d be lucky to get a date with me”, and the other woman was really nice and sweet. ‘Well, I bet you can guess who was the most popular. SuperLuckyBitch got all the replies.’ The 55-year-old author was speaking about Mad About The Boy, the third book in the Bridget Jones series, at an event in Los Angeles hosted by her friend, the Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher. When Fisher asked Fielding – who split from former partner Kevin Curran in 2009 – if she had gone on dates with any of the men her fake profiles attracted, she laughed: ‘I did see one person but he realised that I was a writer and guessed who I was. I went and met him and explained I was doing research and he was very nice about it.’ The writer admitted to sharing Bridget’s obsessive streak, which saw her counting every calorie she consumed and documenting her weight daily. She also became so addicted to Twitter that the social nework cut her off after she checked her own profile 150 times in one hour. She explained: ‘I had to stop with the Twitter. It is a bit of a giant popularity contest. I think I got [blocked] as I checked how many followers I had too many times.’ Fielding revealed many similarities between herself and Bridget during the 90-minute talk, including a disorganised approach to work. She said she spends hours ‘faffing about’ before starting work – and often makes Bridget-style gaffes. ‘I was due to have my daughter by C-section at Cedars Sinai so I wrote out this mass email to everyone announcing the birth as it was all planned, but I sent out the email by mistake beforehand. Then I had to let everyone know that I hadn’t even had the baby yet,’ she said. ‘I don’t have a routine for writing. Instead I spend hours going to the fridge or cleaning out the cupboards. I spend a lot of time faffing about, then it’s time to pick the kids up from school. I do a lot of late-night writing – and then I just steal the plot from Jane Austen,’ she joked. Romcom: Hugh Grant and Renee Zellweger in the Bridget Jones film. Fielding revealed many similarities between herself and Bridget during the 90-minute talk, including a disorganised approach to work . She said that initially, she didn’t intend her latest book – which covers topics such as dating among 50-somethings – to be about Bridget Jones, but ‘along the way I realised it needed to be Bridget’. She said: ‘It took me about three months to become Bridget again. It was easier to write it because I was in London. There’s no way I could’ve written it if I was still living in LA. I never told anyone that I was doing a new Bridget book. I wanted to get it written without anyone else’s input.’ She hasn’t ruled another Bridget Jones book, but said: ‘I don’t know if I’ll bring Bridget back again at 61 or 65. I wouldn’t want to do it just for the sake of doing it. I’d only do it if I had something to say.’ | She set up two online dating profiles as research for her latest book . One was sweet and sensible, the other glamorous, sexy but horrible . 'I bet you can guess who was the most popular,' she says . Fielding spoke in Los Angeles at an event promoted by Carrie Fisher . | f5b6b1729d6088f07e7c43afbea9bc685ae054f1 |
By . Jenny Hope . Young women who go through the menopause have a higher risk of suffering 'brain fog', warn researchers . Young women who go through the menopause have a higher risk of suffering ‘brain fog’, warn researchers. A study shows they appear to have more trouble with many cognitive functions including memory and coordination. In the UK, the average age of the menopause is 51 years, when women’s ovaries run out of eggs and they can no longer have children. A British study last year found one in 20 women had gone through an early menopause, which can occur from the teens onwards. There may be no medical reason, or it may be caused by medical treatment including hysterectomy. The loss of oestrogen means women lose their natural protection against heart disease and thinning bones. But premature menopause may have long-term deleterious effects on brain function, says a new study in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Almost 5,000 post-menopausal women were given cognitive tests at the start of the study and then after two, four and seven years. Around 7.6 per cent of the women in the study had a premature menopause and a further 13 per cent had an early menopause between 41 and 45 years. Over a fifth of the women used hormone treatment (HRT) during the menopause. In comparison to women going through the menopause after 50, those with a premature menopause did worse on a range of brain function tests. They were 40 per cent more likely to perform badly in verbal fluency and visual memory tests. They were also 35 per cent more at risk of a decline in psychomotor speed, the coordination between the brain and the muscles that brings about movement, and overall cognitive function over 7 years. Premature menopause may have long-term deleterious effects on brain function, says a new study in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology . There was no greater risk of dementia. HRT to alleviate the effects of premature menopause helped visual memory, but could increase the risk of poor verbal fluency. Study leader Dr Joanne Ryan at the Hospital La Colombiere, Montpellier, said ‘Both premature surgical menopause and premature ovarian failure, were associated with long-term negative effects on cognitive function, which are not entirely offset by menopausal hormone treatment.’ Pierre Martin Hirsch, BJOG deputy editor-in-chief said ‘With the ageing population it is important to have a better understanding of the long term effects of a premature menopause on later-life cognitive function and the potential benefit from using menopausal hormone treatment. ‘This study adds to the existing evidence base to suggest premature menopause can have a significant impact on cognitive function in later life which healthcare professionals must be aware of.’ | Average age of the menopause is 51 , when women run out of eggs . British study last year found one in 20 had gone through early menopause . Oestrogen loss means protection is lost against heart disease and bones . | 983b5b43cad619bda960f26dc3bd3d5d9ca5a99c |
(CNN) -- Police in British Columbia say a man wanted for allegedly recording himself reaching speeds of at least 186 mph on his motorcycle and posting the video on YouTube has been arrested. Randy George Scott, 25, walked into the Kelowna, British Columbia, police department Tuesday evening, identified himself, and said there was a warrant for his arrest. "The man allegedly responsible for the infamous YouTube video "Victoria Highway Run 299km" is in custody," Kelowna police said in a statement. Kelowna is about six hours from Saanich, the town where the incident took place. British Columbia police ID biker who posted video of 186-mph ride . On July 10, charges were filed against Scott after receiving tips from the public identifying him as the motorcycle rider in the video. The Saanich Police Department on Vancouver Island said the incident took place on April 6 on a busy stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway. Video of the ride quickly went viral across the Internet, but Scott was nowhere to be found. In the video, a motorcyclist is seen reaching a speed of 299 kilometers per hour (186 mph) weaving between cars, but authorities think his actual speed may have been even faster. The speedometer tops out at 299 kph. "You can hear him accelerating even when it says 299 kph," Saanich Police Sgt. Dean Jantzen told CNN. The posted speed limit is 80 kph (50 mph). Jantzen said motorcyclists traveling at dangerously excessive speeds are not typical in that part of Saanich, which is more urban. Saanich police said Scott, if convicted of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, could be sentenced up to five years in jail. Police in Kelowna aren't sure why Scott chose their town as the place to surrender, but said they are working with Saanich police investigators on the case. Since Scott surrendered in the same province where he was wanted, the extradition process is less complex, according to Royal Canadian Mounted Police Constable Kris Clark. Scott remains in Kelowna police custody and was scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. The full video can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIUTXIsJz3o . More from CNN Justice: . Justice Department investigating Pennsylvania voter ID law . Singer charged with murder in botched cosmetic procedure . Gun background checks in Colorado spike after shooting . Killer of Jennifer Hudson relatives gets three life sentences without parole . | Randy George Scott, 25, turns himself in in Kelowna, British Columbia . Police say the incident took place April 6 on the Trans-Canada Highway . YouTube video shows motorcycle weaving through traffic at hair-raising speed . | 110cf421b5dc500fe37589374dd62708e016dc54 |
By . Sally Lee . Candid photographs of Anzac troops at Gallipoli have captured moments which reflect true experiences of war. The Australian War Memorial has released 39 images as part of a travelling exhibition to commemorate the centenary of the First World War. The photos were taken by leading Melbourne surgeon Sir Charles Ryan while he was serving with the Australian Imperial Force in Turkey in 1915. Scroll down for video . Sir Charles Ryan, the Melbourne surgeon who took candid photos of soldiers during the First World War, stands outside the dugout of the Aide-de-Camp at Gallipoli in 1915 . This image of Brigadier General Carruthers, a British officer, depicts the dry and forbidding conditions Anzac troops had to endure . The exhibition - A Camera on Gallipoli - shows the reality behind the 1915 Gallipoli campaign, director of the Australian War Memorial Dr Brendan Nelson said. 'In 1914, at the age of 61, Sir Charles Ryan was appointed consulting surgeon to the AIF, embarking from Melbourne in October for the Middle East and on to Gallipoli,' he said. 'Sir Charles Ryan’s photographs reflect the Australians' true experience of war, depicting the dry, forbidding landscape, tired troops in the trenches, and squalid dugouts.' But while the images illustrate the realities of war, Dr Nelson says the photos also portray 'true spirit of the Australian soldiers who fought at Gallipoli'. 'Their mateship, stoicism and endurance underpin the photographs and embody the meaning of the Anzac spirit,' he said. Dr Ryan served as a doctor with the Turkish army in 1877 to 1878, treated Ned Kelly at Glenrowan - north-east of Melbourne - and gave long service as a senior military officer, Dr Nelson said. 'He was extended high civil and military recognition by his peers,' Dr Nelson said. The photos will be displayed in three formats: a framed exhibition, a pop-up banner exhibition and a digital exhibition. They will be travelling across NSW from August to October. For more information, click here. Two soldiers of the Supply Depot, from the first Australian Division, stand amongst stacked boxes of corned beef and canned meat. Rows of petrol or water cans are in the foreground . Soldiers are preparing to carry water and other supplies to the trenches . | The Australian War Memorial released the 39 images on Friday . The travelling exhibition commemorates the centenary of the First World War . The photos were taken by Melbourne surgeon Sir Charles Ryan while he was serving with the Australian Imperial Force in Turkey in 1915 . | 5d9db3b7d5d6fe1023d00ecae43358518cc3c2f1 |
Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos has revealed that the penalty given against him in the defeat by Atletico Madrid further emphasised why he prefers the Premier League ahead of La Liga. The league leaders lost for the second match in a row against their near rivals in the first leg of their last-16 Copa del Rey clash on Wednesday, with the Spain international adjudged to have fouled Raul Garcia for the spot kick that gave Atletico the all-important lead. After the game the 28-year-old underlined his frustration at the award of the penalty, indicating such a decision wouldn't have been made in the English game. Sergio Ramos pleads his innocence to the referee after the award of a penalty against Real Madrid . The 28-year-old can't believe what is seeing after being penalised for a foul on Atletico Madrid's Raul Garcia . He told AS: 'I'm not going to talk about controversial issues and certainly not that incident. 'The only thing I will say is that, with every passing day, I prefer the English Premier League. 'What am I talking about? Obviously not about the ball-boys... the style of play, refereeing. 'People enjoy watching that competition. When one loses, it's easy to focus on the refereeing decisions.' Jose Gimenez (seocnd right) celebrates his goal after putting Atletico 2-0 up against Real on Wednesday night . Fernando Torres (right) - making his second debut for Atletico - vies for the ball with Real defender Ramos . Madrid now face a uphill battle to maintain their chance of retaining their Copa del Rey trophy, but Ramos insists that his team will fight to the bitter end. He added: 'Real Madrid as an institution obliges us to do our best to try and overcome this tie. 'Our focus is initially on Saturday's game against Espanyol and then on the return leg.' | Real Madrid suffered their second successive defeat at the hands of rivals Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night in their last-16 Copa del Rey clash . Madrid defender Sergio Ramos was incensed at the award of a penalty which led to Atletico's first goal . The 28-year-old was penalised for a foul on Raul Garcia . Spain international hinted he would welcome a move to the Premier League . Ramos said the foul given against him wouldn't have happened in England . Click here for more Real Madrid team news . | 9457332c35660dbea8777557c1952f032b39f6fe |
By . Emily Crane for Daily Mail Australia . Housing prices continue to rise right across the country but there's one street in Sydney that takes the cake. Raglan Street in Mosman, in Sydney's north shore, is home to the highest number of million-dollar homes and is easily the most expensive street in Australia. New data from onthehouse.com.au reveals NSW is the wealthiest state when it comes to residential properties, with 23 percent of dwellings valued at more than $1 million. Scroll down for video . Raglan Street in Mosman, in Sydney's north shore, is home to the highest number of million-dollar homes and is easily the most expensive street in Australia, according to new data . New data from onthehouse.com.au reveals NSW is the wealthiest state when it comes to residential properties . While Mosman boasts the most expensive street, the suburbs itself ranked 11th on the top list of suburbs with 99.87 percent of houses in the millionaire's club . This four bedroom home at 138 Raglan Street is going under the hammer on Saturday, August 30 . While Mosman boasts the most expensive street, the suburbs itself ranked 11th on the top list of suburbs with 99.87 percent of houses in the millionaire's club. John Edwards, a consulting analyst for onthehouse.com.au said it was no surprise to see so many NSW suburbs housing some of Australia’s most expensive properties. 'Within the top 10 alone, no suburb drops below 99 percent, and while Mosman didn’t make the top 10, the fact it hosts Australia’s number one street still cements its position as one of Australia’s most prosperous localities,' he said. Balgowlah Heights, Clontarf, Cremorne Point, Duffys Forest, Henley, Huntleys Point and Huntleys Cove are the most expensive NSW suburbs with 99.99 percent of homes being valued over $1 million. This five bedroom home at 72 Raglan Street sold for $2.7 million . The substantial Federation home boasts views of Sydney's iconic harbour . A selling point of the property was the formal and informal living areas flowing effortlessly to provide unlimited entertaining . This renovated Federation family residence with sweeping harbour views at 35 Raglan Street sold for $2.7 back in 2012 . The renovated home had five bedrooms, three bathrooms and spacious open plan living . 19 Raglan Street sold for $3.7 million in 2014 . The five bedroom home overlooks the iconic Sydney harbour . All living areas in number 19 have views toward Taronga Zoo . The property also boasts breathtaking views over picturesque Sirius Cove . 136 Raglan Street only sold in June this year . The late Victorian mansion is surrounded by beautifully landscaped gardens with an abundance of colour and lush lawns . The five bedroom home boasts high ceilings and exquisite period detail . The home also includes a large wine cellar and separate automatic lock-up double garage . The four bedroom home has been crafted to cater for both relaxed family living and executive entertaining . The open plan gourmet kitchen contains gas appliances . The second storey offers king size bedrooms and abundant built-ins . This house at 93 Raglan Street, Mosman, adds to the high number of million-dollar homes . Set on a large block of manicured gardens, this five bedroom home blends classic with contemporary in private park-like surrounds . Several bedrooms within this house have own study and two have their own ensuite . number 93 has distinguished formal lounge/dining and open plan family living . | Raglan Street in Mosman, in Sydney's north shore, is home to the highest number of million-dollar homes . NSW is the wealthiest state when it comes to residential properties, with 23 percent of dwellings valued at more than $1 million . | 5eae9ae4f794e2ec20051c2b4d458a7236b2e584 |
Tough new Alabama immigration laws are forcing even legal migrants workers to flee the southern state over fears they will be deported. Regulations introduced last week seen as the toughest in America have caused a mass exodus in the state, which experts say could cripple Alabama's economy. A staggering one quarter of commercial building workers are thought to have left the state since tight regulations were introduced. Exodus: Tomato farmer Kassi Cruz picks tomatoes alone on a farm in Alabama after dozens of Hispanic workers did not show up for work for fear of being deported . Staying away: Casey Smith, a potato farmer, said just five of his 25 staff turned up for work following the strict immigration rules introduced last week . Masses of legal Hispanic workers are leaving Alabama because family members and friends don't have the correct paperwork and they fear they could be jailed. Many are fleeing to Tennessee or Washington, while those who are staying are 'trying not to go out as much'. Under strict rules brought in last week, schools have to check the immigration status of newly enrolled children. Immigration laws in Alabama also allow police to ask for papers showing citizenship or immigration status during traffic stops if they have a 'reasonable suspicion' that the person may be in the country illegally. As a result, over 800 Hispanic pupils have either withdrawn or not returned to state schools, while an estimated one quarter of the commercial building work force has left since last week. Elsewhere, one fruit farmer told how just eight of a near 50-strong workforce returned to work last week. Rick Pate, the owner of a commercial landscaping company in Montgomery, lost two of his most experienced workers, who were in the country legally. Mr Smith's sweet potato-picking workforce in Cullman, Alabama, is one of many to have been dramatically reduced due to immigration rules . School's out: Flowers School in Montgomery, Alabama, is one of many to have seen Hispanic pupils stay away . He said: 'They just feel like there is a negative atmosphere for them here. They don't feel welcome. I don't begrudge them. I'd feel nervous, too.' Commercial construction is a more than $7 billion-a-year industry in Alabama. The law targets employers by forbidding drivers from stopping along a road to hire temporary workers. It also bars businesses from taking tax deductions for wages paid to illegal workers and makes it a crime for an illegal immigrant to solicit work. A federal judge has temporarily blocked those sections of the law so she can study them more. Legislators said the law would help legal residents suffering from nearly 10 percent unemployment. One of the bill's authors, Republican Sen. Scott Beason, defended the legislation by saying he expected short-term problems, and that he has received 'thank you' calls from two people who replaced illegal immigrants who fled their jobs. 'We have the best law in the country and I stand by what we've done,' Beason said. However, on Chandler Mountain in north Alabama, tomato farmer Lana Boatwright said only eight of the 48 Hispanic workers she needed for harvest showed up after the law took effect. Those who did were frightened. 'My husband and I take them to the grocery store at night and shop for them because they are afraid they will be arrested,' she said. Farmer Chad Smith said his family farm stands to lose up to $150,000 because there are not enough workers to pick tomatoes spoiling in the fields. 'We will be lucky to be in business next year,' he said. Many tomato crops in Alabama have rotting fruit due to legal workers staying away from their jobs . The huge reduction in the workforce is set to have a damaging effect on Alabama's economy . The financial toll will vary by area, and experts said it's too early to make predictions. In Tuscaloosa, there is still a lot of rebuilding to be done after Alabama's killer tornadoes in April. Without the Hispanic workers to help out, it will take even longer for neighborhoods to be fixed up. Blake Corder, the president of the Home Builders Association of Tuscaloosa, noted that the workers had left the area and he even lost a few renters in the past week. Likewise, schools are worried about their students who have suddenly stopped showing up for class. Out of 34,000 Hispanic students, 2,285 were absent Monday. That number increased from Friday by a few hundred. The figures show seven out of every 100 Hispanic children were out of school, even though state school officials have tried to assure parents that they won't release their names to police and that no child will be denied an education due to legal status. Builders have complained they can't find replacement workers and delays in projects are expected. Russell Davis, executive vice president of the Home Builders Association of Alabama, said: 'Once the economy picks up and construction returns to normal, the impact will increase. 'There is going to be a void. No question.' | Hispanic fruit pickers 'frightened to come to work' One quarter of building workers fail to attend jobs . | f57336367abf4a7fd946d1422c6abebd79f3d4b9 |
(EW.com) -- ''That was some melodramatic s---!'' So says Quentin, the bachelor troublemaker played by Terrence Howard in "The Best Man Holiday." He's talking about one of the film's many heated, if not hysterical, fights, but he might be describing the movie as a whole. Back in 1999 "The Best Man" was an outrageously fresh comedy of love and backbiting, and not just because it marked Hollywood's belated discovery that characters could be upscale and African-American at the same time. EW: Box office preview - 'The Best Man Holiday' won't best 'Thor' The movie had wit, verve, spark, and surprise. But writer-director Malcolm D. Lee shouldn't have waited 14 years to do a sequel. "The Best Man Holiday" reunites the characters for a Christmas-weekend house party, and what ensues is like a better-written Tyler Perry movie: too many life crises rooted in too much recycled backstory. The actors are winning, especially Taye Diggs as the now-struggling Harper, Regina Hall as the ex-stripper Candace, and the great Morris Chestnut as football star Lance. But "The Best Man Holiday" is an eggnog that's sticky-sweet and heavy at the same time. Grade: B- . See the original story at EW.com. CLICK HERE to Try 2 RISK FREE issues of Entertainment Weekly . © 2011 Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. All rights reserved. | The film is a sequel to 1999's "The Best Man" It reunites the characters at a Christmas house party . Reviewer says the "actors are winning" | 493e9fbd271ceaa18a8f8573791f756ae33f3777 |
(CNN) -- Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton stormed to his third pole position in four races at qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix on Saturday. The Briton, who will be hunting down a third successive win this season on Sunday, finished just over half-a-second ahead of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo posting a time of one minute, 53.860 seconds in the third qualifying session (Q3). Ricciardo's teammate, Sebastian Vettel finished third with Mercedes's driver Nico Rosberg joining his compatriot on the second row of the grid after a wet qualifying session at the Shanghai International Circuit. "It's so slippery out there," Hamilton said. "Trying to find the grip, obviously not making mistakes on your lap, and really putting it together, especially when you have these guys pushing you. "So, it was a tough session. I really enjoyed it. The car was feeling great. We always have stuff we can improve but the team have done a great job this weekend. A good position for the race and I hope we can follow through tomorrow," Hamilton added. Ricciardo, who had his disqualification from the Australian Grand Prix confirmed in the week, was pleased with second place after admitting to finding the conditions tough going. "To be honest, I struggled a bit throughout the session, at least personally I didn't feel like I was getting on top of the conditions but then the last set of inters right at the end of Q3 we managed to get a bit more out of it and I put a good lap together, so pretty pleased to be on the front row," the Australian said. Fernando Alonso, who won this race last season, found his Ferrari still off the pace and had to settle for fifth. And it was another disappointing day for the Spaniard's teammate Kimi Raikkonen -- the Finn failed to make it into Q3 and will start from 11th on Sunday. All eyes are on new Ferrari team principal Marco Mattiacci who has been tasked with reversing the fortunes of the Italian team after a poor start to the season. The 43-year-old, who replaced outgoing Stefano Domenicali, who quit as team boss on Monday, told reporters he was "extremely motivated" to succeed following Friday's practise session. Further down the grid, the Williams pair of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas continued their promising start to 2014 finishing six and seventh respectively. Force India's Nico Hulkenberg will start Sunday's race from eighth ahead of Toro Rosso's Jean Eric Vergne with Lotus' Romain Grosjean making up the top 10. Read more: CNN's essential guide to F1 in 2014 . Read more: Why can't women win in F1? | British driver makes it three out of four poles this season . Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg qualifies fourth . Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel second and third respectively . Ferrari's Fernando Alonso will start Sunday's race from fifth . | b5ff5c16d7de1e924fd67599f4f0e091844b582e |
As he watched the presidential debates, Bretton Holmes was irritated. But it wasn't the candidates who were getting to him, it was hearing independent voters and undecided voters lumped into the same group. The 35-year-old from Phoenix has registered as an independent since he was 18. He has voted for Democrats and Republicans over the years. The biggest misconception he hears is this: "If you're registered as an independent, that must mean you're undecided," he said. "That's just an opinion that happens to be very incorrect," he said. "Being independent has nothing to do with being undecided." Living in a two-party country can be tough for this group of voters, but there are more independents these days than ever. Thirty-eight percent of Americans identify themselves as independents, according to a 2012 study on party identification by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. "The proportion of independents now equals its highest level in 70 years," said a different Pew study from 2009. "Owing to defections from the Republican Party, independents are more conservative on several key issues than in the past." Being called an undecided voter irks "independent thinker" Holmes, as he already has made his decision. "In my case, it was already clear who I wanted to vote for," he said. He cast an early ballot for President Barack Obama. CNN asked independents why they refuse to align with a party and heard from more than 100 people. A variety of themes arose, from not wanting to be labeled to disgust with political rancor to feeling that being independent is the "spirit of America." 'I don't like being labeled' Omekongo Dibinga of Washington has consistently voted Democrat but explains that he's always identified himself as an independent. He's never voted for a Republican because "I haven't agreed with any of the candidates' values, but I reserve the right to vote for a Republican if their values match mine," he said. Growing up in an impoverished neighborhood in Boston where "violence was a problem," Dibinga faced stereotypes that he has worked to overcome as a diversity consultant and motivational speaker. "I don't like being labeled. I've been labeled a lot of things in my life," he said. Jennifer Cummins, a moderate independent, has a similar problem with siding with just one party. "It's mostly the label," she said. "If you say you're a Democrat, that must mean you are a left-wing liberal with no personal responsibility. If you say you are a Republican, you must be a right-wing millionaire who doesn't care about others." The Frankfort, Kentucky, voter feels a "lack of respect" toward independents like her and wishes there was more air time given to independent candidates. "I think it's a travesty that the only 'limelight' that exists is with either Republican or Democratic when there are other options on the ballot with better opinions, much better track records, and a real solution," she said. Voting for the 'lesser of two evils' Roger Cantillo, 37, identified more with the Democratic Party when he was younger, but he started considering himself an independent in 2008. "The 2008 presidential race is when I really started getting involved in politics and trying to understand what's going on in Washington. It's just unfortunate that there's a lot of gridlock, and people are playing both sides," he said. In the last few elections, he voted for Republican George W. Bush, Democrat John Kerry and, most recently, Obama. While Cantillo's "progressive values" indicate he leans more to the left, Cantillo said he finds faults with both parties. He will be voting for Obama on Election Day, but he's not enthusiastic about it. "I'm picking the lesser of two evils come this election." It's the 'spirit of America' Raised as a Southern Democrat who switched to voting Republican in 1999, Mary Helen Yarborough has voted for presidential candidates from both parties equally. She has identified as a "confused" independent for 10 years, she said. GOP presidential candidates Rick Perry and Newt Gingrich excited the right-leaning independent in the primaries, and she "flirted" with the idea of voting for Obama back in July. Ultimately, she says, her vote will go to Mitt Romney next week. But the opinionated South Carolinian doesn't want to be tied down to a party. "I don't want to be controlled," she said. "I feel better as an independent. I feel like it's a more honest position." Voting independent just feels "more American," she said. "America was born on the theme of independence, and I find that being a committed independent is therefore truer to our national pride." Betty Faller-Pearson, 66, voted for Obama in 2008 and Bush in 2004. She agrees with Yarborough's line of thinking. "I don't vote party lines because I don't always agree with either party, Democrats or Republicans," she said. "I'm not liberal, I'm not conservative. I'm independent and can make my own decisions." For the Las Vegas resident, being an independent goes back to America's roots. "I am an independent voter because I believe in the spirit of America and how and why it was founded," she said. Raised Republican in Texas and now married to a Democrat from New Jersey, Jim Mitchem's flavor of independence stems from a similar tree. "I've never been one for dogma and don't feel like any 'side' could represent my free will well enough to go straight ticket," he said. The 44-year-old has voted for Ronald Reagan, Bush, Ross Perot (twice), Al Gore and Obama. He said it's "too restricting" to affiliate with one party. "In the spirit of independence by Americans who broke away from political dogma in the 1700s, I'm proud to be unaffiliated." Lost between parties . Brian Pigg confesses he feels "lost" politically. Growing up in the Reagan era, the 44-year-old holds the Republican beliefs of smaller government and fiscal responsibility, he said. As a veteran, he supports having a strong military. But his concerns with the increasing U.S. debt and George W. Bush's presidency made him reconsider the way he voted, he said. "Years ago, I began to feel disowned by my party, as this debt didn't start in '08 (not that it isn't getting worse)," he wrote on CNN iReport. The "rise of the religious right" was the final straw. What's a man without a party to do? At first he thought about abstaining from voting. "I haven't heard a single candidate worth voting for, not in local, state, or federal elections," he said. "They all seem to say whatever they think will get them votes without actually being nailed to anything." The Grandview, Missouri, resident admits he wasn't going to vote at all this year until controversy arose around U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin's comments on rape. "Now I'm going just to vote against him. How sad is that," he asked. Be 'free thinkers' But Holmes, the voter who emphasized the difference between independents and undecideds, asserts that voting as "free thinkers" is the answer. "Everyone has the ability to think for themselves and question what other people are saying if they don't think it's right," he said. "Speak up!" | 38% of Americans identify themselves as independents, according to a 2012 study . CNN iReport asked independents why they refuse to align with a party . Not wanting to be labeled and disgust with political rancor were popular reasons . | 39f18757f8bb0cb54a6515df2f842c57508c15b9 |
By . Rob Preece . PUBLISHED: . 12:15 EST, 6 August 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 02:01 EST, 7 August 2012 . 'Possessed': Liberal Democrat councillor Simon Arthur has been jailed for attacking his mother . A senior Liberal Democrat councillor who punched his frail 87-year-old mother and told her she would 'suffer in the afterlife' has been jailed. Simon Arthur, 44, treated his mother Isabelle 'like a dog' and told her he hoped she would 'have an awful death', a court heard. Mrs Arthur, a widow who uses a walking stick to get around, would even sleep in her car at times to avoid her violent son, magistrates were told. The councillor, who was chosen to contest a seat for the Lib Dems in the 2010 General Election, was today sentenced to four months in prison after admitting attacking Mrs Arthur. Arthur was arrested after a neighbour saw him assaulting his mother on the driveway of their home in Newton, near Swansea, South Wales, on July 21. Prosecutor Sharon Anderson told Swansea Magistrates' Court: 'Mrs Arthur had been out for the day but said she was too scared to return home, choosing to wait in a car park. 'She regularly went to the car park to avoid going home and had even slept there overnight previously. 'Around 8pm she did go home and parked in the driveway but her son had locked all the doors to their home. 'At around 11.30pm he came out of the house and began the attack.' Mrs Arthur gave details of the attack in a witness statement. It read: 'He came over, opened the driver’s side door, grabbed hold of my hair and tried to pull me out of the car. It was like he was possessed.' 'He tried to grab me a second time shouting: “You’ll burn, you’ll suffer in the afterlife.”' Magistrates heard that Mrs Arthur tried to make her way down the driveway to get help but her son grabbed her walking stick to block her path. Ms Anderson said: 'Mrs Arthur fell to the ground and dragged herself along the floor. 'She crawled out of the drive and her son followed, eventually trying to pick her up but she told him to leave her alone.' When police arrived and took Arthur into his kitchen, he opened a drawer and grabbed a knife, the court heard. Justice: Arthur was sentenced at Swansea Magistrates' Court after pleading guilty to assault charges . He lunged at Pc Greg Bowen, who avoided the blade and managed to disarm the councillor. Mrs Arthur was opposed to criminal proceedings being brought against her son and asked police and social services to help him instead. Her statement read: 'I now realise he will hurt me if he carries on - I don’t know what I have done to deserve this. 'I want him out of my house. I want him to get the help he needs.' Mrs Arthur told police her son treated her like a dog, adding that she was terrified of him and 'living on eggshells'. In her statement she said Arthur had never had a proper job and had always relied on her for financial support. 'He has a nasty temper and has got more controlling since my husband died 22 years ago,' she said. 'Simon’s behaviour escalated last year after my twin brother Peter died. 'He told me: “It should be you that’s gone, not Peter. I hope you have an awful death”.' Mrs Arthur added: 'I try and let it go over my head but when it’s physical, I can’t excuse it.' Magistrates were told Mrs Arthur was advised by social services to write a letter to her son, asking him to leave their home. But he responded by laughing and throwing it away, the court heard. Arthur admitted to police that he had punched his mother on a number of previous occasions. Politician: Arthur, who has been jailed for four months, was elected as a Liberal Democrat councillor in the picturesque Mumbles area of South Wales . When officers asked him to indicate the force he had used on a scale of one to ten, he replied: 'Two.' Arthur, a councillor for the Newton ward on Mumbles Community Council, admitted common assault and assault by beating. Magistrates imposed a restraining order on Arthur after hearing his mother no longer wants to share her home with him. He was ordered to move out and only to visit on her instructions. Eliot Griffiths JP told him: 'Your mother is now very much in charge and you have to do what she tells you to.' The local branch of the Liberal Democrats has suspended Arthur and is expected to expel him permanently. | Simon Arthur, 44, admitted attacking his mother Isabelle outside their South Wales home . She would sleep in her car to avoid her violent son, magistrates told . He told her: 'You'll burn, you'll suffer in the afterlife' | 0e8dc3f00763076a9ed6a515775dcee57db8726b |
A publicity stunt that involved releasing thousands of butterflies at a Chinese science exhibition to raise awareness of conservation backfired badly - after thousands of the insects were killed. The incident took place in Xingxiang in central China's Henan Province during the Butterfly Popular Science Exhibition, organised by a museum in the city. During the event more than 10,000 rare butterfly specimens of various species from around the world were on display. Poorly thought-out: Thousands of butterflies were killed during a conservation event in Xinxiang, China. The insects were released but many injured by crowds eager to hold them . Ironic: The aim of the butterfly release was to highlight conservation efforts . Shredded: This picture shows the badly-damaged remains of the butterflies . The organisers also released thousands of butterflies to promote the idea of environmental awareness. But, instead of protecting them, visitors started to fight to capture the flying butterflies, causing many of the creatures to be crushed or injured. Amazingly, something similar happened during an event to showcase the natural beauty of land earmarked for a new property development earlier this month. A company bought land on the outskirts of the city of Wuhan in China's Hubei Province and hoped to attract potential buyers by highlighting the area's natural environment, far away from the smog of the city. The region of rolling hills and woodland is named Butterfly Valley, and so the developers decided that a Butterfly Festival would be the perfect way to showcase the region. Visitors started to fight to capture the flying butterflies, causing many of the creatures to be crushed or injured . The incident took place in Xingxiang in central China's Henan Province during the Butterfly Popular Science Exhibition, organised by a museum in the city . Beauty expired: A woman holds a pair of the fragile insects up to the camera . Children grabbed the brightly-coloured butterflies. They event featured a vast array of different species . A butterfly lands on the arm of a toddler attending the science exhibition . The only problem was most butterflies hatched in the area in early spring and the last ones had already died around June. So instead they contacted specialist breeders and arranged for thousands of butterflies from more than 800 different species to be shipped in. Some were released by members of the public, while others were kept in special netted tents for the amusement of visitors. However, not only did many of the butterflies get injured in transit and die shortly after they were released, but others succumbed to the unseasonal weather and expired after a few days. So instead of the sight of butterflies fluttering over the valley or being snapped by happy visitors, Chinese social media was flooded with images of dead and dying exotic butterflies falling from the sky or being trampled underfoot. It sparked a wave of protest from China's small but increasingly vocal animal rights activists who said the whole idea was 'cruel and pointless'. The PR agency that organised the stunt said they had asked visitors not to touch or play with the butterflies, and that the only reason they were dying was because they had a short lifespan. | The insects were released at a science show in the city of Xingxiang . Aim was to increase awareness of conservation efforts to protect butterflies . But the crowd tried to grab them as they flew away, killing thousands . | d409fa7d12ae9d23b099041ceb6c5962500a9748 |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 08:43 EST, 2 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 03:15 EST, 3 September 2013 . The 20-year-old New Hampshire coed who died from an overdose at a New York City dance music festival Saturday told paramedics she'd taken a dangerous club drug just moments before collapsing. 'I just took six hits of Molly,' Olivia Rotondo told EMS workers before she was rushed to the hospital. The college junior was one of two twenty-somethings who died of an overdose of Molly, the street name for MDMA, that day at the Electric Zoo music festival. Four other party-goers were also sickened and were hospitalized in critical condition. 'I just took six hits of Molly': 20-year-old Olivia Rotondo (right) died Saturday after suffering a seizure in front of paramedics at the Electric Zoo music festival in New York City . According to the New York Daily News, Rotondo also suffered a seizure as she collapsed in front of paramedics. The festival was scheduled to last through Sunday, but its third day of trance music and dancing was cancelled in light of the tragic deaths. Rotondo, a Providence, Rhode Island native, died at the hospital Saturday night. Jeffrey . Russ, 23, from Rochester, New York, also died from an overdose Saturday. Police . believe all six attendees either overdosed or took tainted doses of the . party drug Molly - a potent powder form of MDMA, aka Ecstasy. Tragic: Rotondo was one of two attendees of New York City's Electric Zoo music festival who died Saturday from overdoses of Molly . Another victim: 23-year-old Jeffrey Russ of Rochester, New York also died Saturday due to an apparent Molly overdose . Tragedy at dance festival: Olivia Rotondo, 20, from Providence, Rhode Island passed away after attending Electric Zoo shortly after Jeffrey Russ from Rochester, NY . 'Just get me to the damn zoo,' Rotondo tweeted hours before her death . In the aftermath of two deaths at New York City's Electric Zoo and and at least three overdoses in Massachusetts, DEA officials say the drug known as Molly, MDMA, or Ecstacy is a top priority. 'There’s no ‘good batch’ of molly,' Anthony Pettigrew, a spokesman for the DEA New England division, told the Boston Herald. 'This is stuff that’s made in somebody’s bathtub in either Asia, the Netherlands, Canada, you have no idea what is in this stuff. Dealers want to make more money, so they’ll mix and adulterate the stuff with meth and any number of other drugs to addict people to it.' An official with the New York arm of the Drug Enforcement Agency concurred. 'We are seeing (molly) goes hand-in-hand with a lot of nightclub activity, concert venues, areas where there’s a lot of teens listening to music,' said Erin Mulvey. 'With these overdose deaths and the focus now with trying to get the awareness out, we’re trying to get in front of the problem.' More dangerous? Molly has been known for years as MDMA or Ecstasy, but some say its powder form is more dangerous because it is easily adulterated when put inside capsules . Last Tuesday, 19-year-old Brittany Flannigan died in Boston after taking the drug Molly. OLD DRUG, NEW TRICKS? Molly is a crystalline or powder form of the well-known club drug Ecstasy. However, some believe Molly--which can be snorted or swallowed in a capsule--is more likely than the drug in tablet form to be laced with anything from caffeine to methamphetamine. The moniker 'Molly' could also refer to the chemical MDMA (ecstasy) or to a variety of similar and related chemicals. The drug is popular at music and dance venues because of its ability to energize its user. Users also report a sense of heightened empathy and of a heightened ability to 'feel' the music. It is nearly impossible for a user to judge exactly how much Molly they can safely take because there is no set measure of potency and it is often impossible to tell if a dose has been adulterated. Friends and family of the two . festival-goers who died have now endured callous attacks by ravers who are furious . the organizers canceled the final day of the music festival over the . deaths. Music fans have . called the deceased 'irresponsible idiots' and said that concert . promoters should not have 'punished' surviving fans because of the . 'irresponsibility' of the two victims. City officials urged organizer Made . Event to cancel the final day of Electric Zoo to prevent any . additional overdoses. On Sunday morning, they complied and told fans . that they would receive a full refund for the last day of the festival. That didn't satisfy some, who took their anger out of Russ and Rotondo - blaming them for the cancellation. Facebook . use Ben Spanbock posted an angry rant on Electric Zoo's Facebook page: . 'I really don't understand how two people could be so stupid,' he wrote. 'Yes . it's sad that they died, but you literally couldn't turn around in that . place without seeing a help station or a water refill. And because two . yokels couldn't control themselves, the other tens of thousands pay the . price. Ridiculous.' Jeffrey Glowka fumed: 'I'm not worried about two idiots who did this to themselves.' Fury: Many Electric Zoo fans had little or no sympathy for the two festival-goers who died . Shutdown: Electric Zoo Electronic Music festival on Randall's Island, NYC was shut down today after suspected drug deaths . Many people say they shouldn't be 'punished' for the deaths of the two fans . Name-calling: One Facebook user said the overdose victims were 'stupid' 'If . you cared about your patrons then you wouldn’t disappoint the tens of . thousand RESPONSIBLE concert goers who LIVE for the music at these . festivals. While my deepest condolences go out to the families of the . lives that were lost yesterday, it does not mean that everyone else . needs to suffer,' an angry David Eli wrote. Dozens of people wrote comments blasting Russ and Rotondo - and hundreds of people 'liked' them. Despite . the callous words from some attendees, most people who wrote on the . Electric Zoo Facebook page praised organizers for canceled the final day . of the event and expressed sympathy for the families of Russ and . Rotondo. This marks the . second time in a week that Molly has made headlines and led to canceled . shows. Brittany Flannigan, a 19-year-old New Hampshire college student, . died after taking the party drug at a show for DJ Zedd in Boston and . two others were hospitalized. The last day of a New York City dance music . festival featured high-profile acts including Avicii, David Guetta and . Diplo. The New York Daily News reported that she tweeted in the hours before her death: 'The amount of traveling I've done today is unreal. Just get me to the damn zoo.' Four more people are being treated in intensive care units in New York hospitals, authorities said. The city says the deaths appear to have been linked to . illegal drugs, specifically MDMA, or ecstasy, also known as Molly. Definitive causes of death have . not yet been determined. The festival took place on Randall's Island in the East River, New York City. Event organizers were turning people away on Sunday. Questions: The cause of death for the 20-year-old University of New Hampshire student has not been confirmed . Condolences: Festival organizers complied with the city's recommendation and closed the festival . The event's founders expressed condolences on its website to the families of those who died. The . message read: 'The founders of Electric Zoo send our deepest . condolences to the families of the two people who passed away this . weekend. 'Because . there is nothing more important to us than our patrons, we have decided . in consultation with the New York City Parks Department that there will . be no show today.' The festival has been held since 2009. Closed down: Events organizers were turning people away on Sunday after the deaths . | Olivia Rotondo from Providence, RI suffered a seizure and then died after taking the dangerous club drug . Jeffrey Russ, 23, from Rochester, NY also died at the New York City dance music festival . Brittany Flannigan, 19, from New Hampshire, died on Wednesday after apparently overdosing on MDMA at a Boston concert . Electric Zoo festival was being held on Randall's Island in the East River but the third and final day of the event was canceled due to the deaths . | f677b6024a6911bf88c13893916369b7485a5f8e |
By . James Gordon . As if alcohol wasn't already easy enough to come by, the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau has reportedly approved a new product called Palcohol, an alcoholic powder that comes in flavors including Cosmopolitan and Kamikaze. Curiously, Palcohol's current website is light on details but the urge to 'drink responsibly' does not appear to be among the company's top priorities. 'Maybe you’re a college football fan. So many stadiums don’t even serve alcohol. What’s that about; watching football without drinking?! That’s almost criminal. Bring Palcohol in and enjoy the game.' Get drunk fast: Powdered alcohol comes in seven different varieties and will be on sale by the fall . Palcohol...because liquid alcohol isn't always convenient. Since Palcohol is a powder, it makes it easy to enjoy a cocktail just about anywhere . Perhaps even more bizarrely, as well as adding the alcoholic power to water, the site also suggests that Palcohol can also be poured over food. 'Sprinkle Palcohol on almost any dish and give it an extra kick. Some of our favorites are the Kamikaze in guacamole, Rum on a BBQ sandwich, Cosmo on a salad and Vodka on eggs in the morning to start your day off right.' There are even some rudimentary cooking instructions: 'Remember, you have to add Palcohol AFTER a dish is cooked as the alcohol will burn off if you cook with it... and that defeats the whole purpose.' The TTB has approved seven versions of this powdered alcohol within the past few days. The alcohol content is around the 60% range and the power can even be snorted. The company wrote on its site: 'You’ll get drunk almost instantly because the alcohol will be absorbed so quickly in your nose.' Party on! The company had stated that Palcohol would make it easier to consume alcohol where it is normally banned, such as at ball games . Palcohol will come in seven different flavors and it simply needs to be added to water in order for the boozing to begin. A number of bloggers are treating the announcement with a healthy degree of skepticism. 'The person that pushed this through must be very patient or lucky and/or good. The product seems highly likely to raise a large number of legal issues and controversies,' writes Patent lawyer Daniel Christopherson on Bevlaw.com. Patent applications are kept confidential by the government until they either issue as a patent or are published. Palcohol describes its product as 'Patent Pending,' which means that they have recently filed a patent application. Start the day of right! Sprinkle a Kamikaze on your breakfast cereal . Perhaps recognising that such a marketing strategy risked causing controversy, and even possible legal issues, Palcohol has recently removed the original copy from its website and issued a clarification: . 'We were caught off guard with the release of some of our labels by the TTB. As a result, people visited this website that we thought was under the radar because we had not made a formal announcement of Palcohol. 'Clearly, this site isn't finished. Thus, the verbiage that was copied was still in draft mode and the labels that were up were incorrect. So please disregard what is being printed as a result of information taken from this site. 'What we can say now is that we hope the product will be used in a responsible and legal manner. Being in compliance with all Federal and State laws is very important to us. Palcohol will only be sold through establishments that are licensed to sell liquor.' Powdered alcohol is not a new concept. Such products are already being sold in other countries including Japan, Germany, and the Netherlands. According to some, alcohol laws would in general only apply to liquids. This would mean that powder-based alcoholic beverages could be sold to minors and that the powder would be exempt from alcohol tax and laws, as is the case with certain products in the Netherlands. | Palcohol can easily be sneaked into sporting events . The powdered alcohol can also be used in drinks or sprinkled on food . Company aims to have the product for sale by the fall . | 7b06d9724b6cb8c832ad8901f60c91d8d07613b6 |
Rachel Kenehan, 35, from London, arrives at Winchester Crown Court where she is on trial alongside three others who are charged with murder and conspiracy to supply . A PhD student who studied criminology used her in-depth knowledge of crime to help her boyfriend run a heroin and crack cocaine ring, months before he and his friends murdered a rival, a court has heard. Rachel Kenehan, 35, of Hewlett Road, London, was in a relationship with one of the men accused of shooting Jahmel Jones in the head in Southampton in 2012. She met her boyfriend Pierre Lewis through a prison mentoring scheme, Winchester Crown Court heard. Kenehan, who also has a Masters degree in sociology, was charged with conspiracy to supply class A drugs, assisting an offender and perverting the course of justice. She was said to have used her academic career at London School of Economics to assist Lewis and his friends deal drugs. Kenehan's boyfriend, Pierre Lewis, 20, and his friends Jemmikai Orlebar-Forbes, 22 and Isaac Boateng, 22 are accused of the murder of Jahmel Jones, 23, also known as Lucky, after he was shot in the head in Southampton in 2012. The jury heard Kenehan had 'an in-depth knowledge of criminal behavior and the frailty of human nature' that she had gained from the studies that she used to aid the crimes. According to prosecutor Ian Lawrie QC she played a 'robust, direct and calculating role' in the conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine, spending thousands hiring cars and making trips on the M3 between London and Southampton. Sometimes she would cover hundreds of miles in a day in her alleged attempts to aid the drug ring that spanned a length of the country. Other times, one hire car would be dropped off and another one picked up ten minutes later, and these cars were frequently caught by speed cameras. Every time one of the cars was caught, Kenehan would take the blame, but the pictures showed a black man was behind the wheel. Kenehan and Lewis met when she was volunteering for a charity that put young men with mentors to stop them from breaking the law, and they soon developed a relationship. Lawrie said: 'How is it that this young lady, with all her ability and intelligence, gets involved in class A drugs? 'It’s a short stop beyond that to assist the man she’s in a relationship with. 'rather ironically, because of her qualifications, she had an in-depth . knowledge of crime, and that it was up to the jury to decide whether she . was someone with a “misplaced attachment” or whether she had been . actively involved.' Mr Lawrie said the defendants had no family and no fixed address in Southampton but would often stay homes of drug users. One of the flats they used was in a block called Graham House in St Mary Street, Southampton, also used by Jones. The jury heard that shortly . before his death, Jones and the defendants were spotted several . times on CCTV cameras walking up and down St Mary Street. Jahmel Jones, 20, was shot in the head in Southampton in 2012 . Jones . ended up asking one of his customers for help and telling them he was . in some sort of trouble. Jones and the customer entered flat four in Graham house where . Orlebar-Forbes allegedly raised his arm, with a revolver in his hand, and fired . two shots. One hit Mr Jones in the head and the other in the right arm, causing him to fall to the floor, and Lewis's palm print was later found on a wall above where Jones had collapsed. The court heard that the . defendants were then seen leaving the building through a back door before . briefly returning to collect their belongings from a friend's home and by 11.31am they were in a taxi to . another friend's home in Basingstoke where they were later picked up by . Kenehan. Orlebar-Forbes was seen rubbing the . taxi's sun visor and rear doors with his sleeve, before they all . changed their phone numbers later that day. Mr Lawrie said there had been regular contact between Lewis and Kenehan which 'spurred her to go to Basingstoke to rescue them, and that according to texts between Lewis and Kenehan that day, she must have known what happened that morning. One text from Kenehan to Lewis said: 'Do not disappear, that will look weird. I want your baby.' Another said: 'Promise we can get through this. Be smart, act normal. We'll talk. I wish you had got your passport.' And a third message talked about them sunning themselves, semi-naked in Brazil. Mr . Lawrie said: 'This behaviour and these actions are an echo of her . desire for the man she presumably loves as she wants his baby. 'The allegation we make is that she is clearly assisting all three defendants.' Kenehan denies all charges, while Lewis, of Castlenau, Barnes, London, Orlebar-Forbes, of Cloudesdale . Road, London, and Boateng, of Mill Farm Crescent, Hounslow, London, all . deny murder but have pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to . supply heroin and crack cocaine. The trial continues. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | In depth knowledge of criminal behavior helped deal drugs, court heard . Her boyfriend is on trial for the murder of another drug dealer . Jahmel Jones was shot in the head in Southampton in 2012 . Accused of driving hundreds of miles in rented cars to assist the dealers . | e33274b62e92cc77246b67903acf64f8cd87230b |
(CNN) -- He told them it was a good day to die so they could be born again. "You're not going to die," self-help author and speaker James Arthur Ray told participants in the sweat lodge that day, they later recalled. "You may think you are, but you're not going to die ... You need to surrender to death to survive it." The sweat lodge ceremony, the culmination of a five-day retreat in Sedona, Arizona, was meant to be a "rebirthing." But by the end of that day, October 8, 2009, two people had died. A third died nine days later, and -- authorities allege -- at least 15 others fell ill. Ray, 53, is charged with three counts of reckless manslaughter in the deaths and could face up to 10 years in prison on each if convicted. Opening statements are set to begin in his trial Tuesday. Prosecutors claim Ray was reckless in the way he conducted the sweat lodge ceremony at the Angel Valley Retreat Center, and heated the lodge -- made of willow trees and branches, and covered with tarpaulins and blankets -- to a perilously high temperature, causing the participants to suffer dehydration and heat stroke. Ray's defense attorneys maintain the deaths were a tragic accident and said he took precautions to forestall harm to the sweat lodge participants, including positioning a nurse and several employees and volunteers trained in CPR outside the sweat lodge and making water, oranges, watermelon and fluids available to participants. "We do not seek to minimize the tragedy of the sweat lodge deaths," said a December 2009 letter to prosecutors from defense attorney Luis Li. "But these deaths were not the result of criminal conduct. Mr. Ray and his team relied on Angel Valley to provide a safe environment, warned people of the risks, did not force people to participate, did not prevent them from leaving, and did everything they could to prepare for any problems and to assist when problems arose." In addition, Ray encouraged participants to hydrate throughout the retreat and warned them the sweat lodge would be very hot, Li wrote. Participants signed a release form saying that the retreat activities could include a sweat lodge with enclosed spaces and high temperatures, according to the letter. At least 16 people came out of the sweat lodge at various points before the ceremony's conclusion, Li said, and about five of them went back in. Kirby Brown, 38, of Westtown, New York, and James Shore, 40, of Milwaukee, died on October 8. Lizbeth Marie Neuman, 49, of Prior Lake, Minnesota, died on October 17. The sweat lodge ceremony consisted of eight rounds, with each round lasting 10 to 15 minutes. While they were not prevented from leaving, participants have said they were encouraged to wait until the breaks between rounds. In interviews with authorities, some participants recounted feeling distress in the first few rounds. Later, they told police, people began to pass out, others began to vomit and still others went into shock. Some were encouraged to lie down in the dirt to seek relief from the heat. "(Ray) knew that people were in trouble," Tom McFeeley, Brown's cousin, told HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell on Monday. "Those calls for help were ignored." The scene inside the lodge became chaotic and nightmarish, participants recounted. Those who had lost consciousness were dragged out between rounds, participants said. One man stumbled into the middle of the lodge and into the hot rocks, burning his hand. Brown reportedly was one of those who encouraged others to stick it out in the sweat lodge. Shore helped a woman out of the sweat lodge between the sixth and seventh rounds before returning to complete the ceremony, witnesses said. Neuman apparently was asked by those around her if she wanted to leave the ceremony, but said no. She never regained consciousness after its conclusion. Neuman died from "multisystem organ failure due to hyperthermia due to prolonged sweat lodge exposure," her autopsy report said. Brown and Shore both died from heat stroke, a medical examiner concluded. All three deaths were ruled accidental. However, a Yapavai County grand jury indicted Ray one day after the medical examiners issued their reports. Participant Sandy Andretti said she had to be carried out. "She said she was dizzy and couldn't function after they hosed her down, and then she went into shock and started shaking," said a police incident report. "... Sandy told me when she came out, she didn't care about herself because she was seeing other people in distress and throwing up, and she felt she needed to help them." Ray had conducted the Spiritual Warrior Retreat for six years at a cost of about $10,000 to participants. The sweat lodge, 5 feet tall and 23 feet wide, was built to accommodate up to about 75 people. There was a pit in the center where heated rocks were placed. Ray poured water over them to create steam. Prosecutors maintain that Ray psychologically pressured participants to remain in the lodge even when they weren't feeling well, contributing to their deaths. "You can't walk out when you're in an altered state. You can't walk out when your capacity to make decisions is taken away from you," said McFeeley, Brown's cousin. "Everything conducted that week was to make sure people fell in line ... Their ability to make rational decisions was taken away from them." Defense attorneys dispute that. Liu wrote in the 2009 letter that Ray "did not lead or pressure participants into making a choice they otherwise would not have made. This was a five-day retreat, not a cult. The JRI (James Ray International, Ray's company) philosophy is a practical approach to creating a successful life, not a religious practice." Beth Karas of "In Session" contributed to this report . | NEW: A relative says victims' "ability to make rational decisions was taken away" James Arthur Ray is charged with three counts of reckless manslaughter . His attorneys maintain the deaths were accidental . Prosecutors say Ray heated the lodge to dangerous temperatures . | b71910a1381f659b168f888f9d99b9c513ef5c5c |
(CNN) -- Some of the worst flooding the mid-South has seen in decades is thought to be responsible for at least 11 deaths in Tennessee, the Nashville and state emergency management offices said Sunday. Five of the deaths were in Davidson County, which encompasses Nashville, according to the Nashville mayor's Office of Emergency Management. The rains have closed interstate highways, displaced thousands from their homes, prompted evacuations of hotels and nursing homes and turned city streets and parking lots into raging rivers. Parts of the state have been drenched with up to 20 inches of rain, with more expected. iReport: Experiencing the Tennessee floods? Send photos, video . On Sunday night, multiple vehicles were trapped by water on Interstate 40 with water rising around them and with authorities working since the afternoon to get to the cars, according to the Office of Emergency Management. Authorities have recovered bodies from a flooded house in Nashville and from an upside down vehicle floating on a flooded road, among other places, the mayor's office said in a release Sunday night. Two young men who'd gone tubing on a flooded creek on Sunday evening were missing, the mayor's office said. Also on Sunday night, authorities were working to evacuate more than 500 residents from the MetroCenter in north Nashville. "All of our major creeks and the Cumberland River are near flood level, if not at flood level," Nashville Mayor Karl Dean said at a press conference Sunday, referring to the waterway that bisects Nashville. "The ground is entirely saturated, and the rain continues to fall. There's nowhere for the water to go." The western two thirds of Tennessee has seen between 6 and 20 inches of rain since Saturday, with flooding spreading to Kentucky on Sunday. In Nashville alone, more than 600 people were rescued from the water this weekend, Dean said. Dean said Sunday that more rain has fallen in Nashville in the last 24 hours than has ever been recorded in the city. Video: Nashville resident captures 'practically a class two rapids' on her neighborhood streets . "We are still at this point in rescue stage and will be until the water begins to subside," he said. Dean urged residents to stay home Sunday and, if they could, to skip work on Monday, when Nashville schools will be closed and public transportation will be suspended. Two of the three temporary shelters -- which can each house 200 people -- opened by the Nashville mayor's office had reached capacity by Sunday evening. The Red Cross reported approximately 400 people in 22 shelters throughout Tennessee. The floods shut down parts of interstates 24, 40 and 65 around Nashville on Saturday and Sunday. The floods left 36,000 houses around Nashville without power on Sunday, while all Davidson County residents were asked to use water for essential purposes only after flooding closed one of the city's water treatment plants. Flooding also led to the evacuation of three area nursing homes, affecting more than 250 patients, Dean said. Opryland Hotel expected to lose power Sunday night and staffers planned to ask their guests to evacuate, according to Janel Lacey, a spokeswoman for the Nashville mayor's office. While some streams around Nashville were starting to recede on Sunday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was planning to release dammed upstream water Sunday night, which could cause more flooding around Nashville, city emergency management chief Stephen Halford said. The water needed to be released to keep the Army Corps equipment safe, Halford said. The National Weather Service issued a civil emergency message Sunday to central and western Tennessee, telling people to stay off roads because too many are closed and people are getting stranded. The weather service also issued a flood emergency Sunday for much of central Kentucky -- where tens of thousands were trying to get home after this weekend's Kentucky Derby -- and in south central Indiana. In Louisville, Kentucky, the National Turnpike and Gene Snyder Freeway were closed on Sunday. In addition to flooding fatalities, one Tennessean died over the weekend in a tornado in Hardeman County, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency said Sunday. The mayor's Office of Emergency Management in Nashville announced Sunday night that it had confirmed five fatalities in Davidson County -- which encompasses Nashville -- thought to be flood-related. | NEW: Bodies recovered from a flooded house and an upside down vehicle on a flooded road . NEW: Multiple vehicles trapped by rising water on Interstate 40 . NEW: Two young men who'd gone tubing on a flooded creek were missing . Flood emergency issued Sunday for central Kentucky and south central Indiana . | dbff85ed8bd653c8869949c118514bc24808c6de |
(CNN) -- A designer clothing store, a comic book store, a tattoo parlor and a ... women for sale store. This unusual window display shocked shoppers at a busy Tel Aviv mall last week when among the run-of-the-mill shops, they came across a group of young women standing in a storefront. On them were price tags detailing their age, weight, height, dimensions and country of origin. Organizers said the campaign is designed to bring awareness to women trafficking. It aims to collect enough signatures to pressure the Israeli justice ministry to back legislation that makes it a crime for men to go to prostitutes. This legislation is the next important step in the fight against women trafficking, said attorney Ori Keidar, one of the founders of the task force against the problem. "The legislation against the prostitutes' customers will bring a reduction in the demand for prostitution and it will be a less lucrative business for crime organizations," Keidar said. "This in turn will bring a reduction in the trafficking of women." Keidar said the legislation is modeled after similar legislation in Sweden that has drastically reduced trafficking and prostitution. Over the past decade, about 10,000 women have been trafficked into Israel in what Keidar calls "modern slavery." The women are locked, beaten, raped, starved and forced to receive 15-30 men a day 365 days a year, according to the attorney. About three years ago, Israeli police greatly reduced women trafficking by pouring resources into the problem. Security forces have also helped by stepping up patrols on the Israeli-Egyptian border as a result of al Qaeda presence in the Sinai. This 300-kilometer border was the main route for smuggling women into Israel, Keidar said. "This legislation against the customers will bring a further reduction in trafficking and with a little more pressure we can make this go away" Keidar said. | The women have price tags detailing their age, weight and height . The tags also include their dimensions and country of origin . The campaign aims to collect enough signatures to pressure the Israeli justice ministry . It hopes the ministry will back legislation that makes it a crime for men to go to prostitutes. | 7925b36ad67a8631b707d448037d41017a1052e4 |
(CNN) -- A federal judge threw out Lance Armstrong's lawsuit against the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency with great force and speed Monday, blasting the seven-time Tour de France champion in a sharply worded ruling. Armstrong filed the case Monday morning in his hometown of Austin, Texas, in a bid to halt a doping case against him. In his brief order, U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks wrote that the case was full of legally irrelevant claims "included solely to increase media coverage of this case" and stir up hostility toward the USADA. "This court is not inclined to indulge Armstrong's desire for publicity, self-aggrandizement, or vilification of defendants, by sifting through 80 mostly unnecessary pages in search of the few kernels of factual material relevant to his claims," Sparks wrote. He urged the cyclist to re-file his lawsuit without "any improper argument, rhetoric, or irrelevant material." "Contrary to Armstrong's apparent belief, pleadings filed in the United States District Courts are not press releases, internet blogs or pieces of investigative journalism," the judge added in a footnote. "All parties, and their lawyers, are expected to comply with the rules of this court, and face potential sanctions if they do not." French Tour de France cyclist arrested . In a statement issued late Monday, Armstrong lawyer Tim Herman said he would "conform my conduct precisely" to the judge's order. "When Judge Sparks speaks, I listen," Herman said. "It doesn't change the legal issues involved or any of the relief that we seek." Mark Fabiani, another Armstrong attorney, said the suit could be re-filed as early as Tuesday. The USADA has accused Armstrong of using performance-enhancing drugs. The 40-year-old cyclist, who is now competing in triathlons, had asked the court to file an injunction against the USADA by Saturday, the agency's deadline for Armstrong to either contest the charges or accept sanctions. Armstrong maintains he has never tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs and said the USADA and its CEO, Travis Tygart, are out to get a "big fish" to justify the agency's existence. "Defendants have charged Mr. Armstrong with unspecified doping violations and seek to try him through USADA's self-created, self-regulated and self-operated process that it has rigged to ensure that it cannot lose," the lawsuit says. "USADA's kangaroo court proceeding would violate due process even if USADA had jurisdiction to pursue its charges against Mr. Armstrong." In June, the agency announced that it was opening proceedings against Armstrong and five former teammates. In a statement issued in response to the lawsuit, Tygart said the agency "was built by athletes on the principles of fairness and integrity." "Like previous lawsuits aimed at concealing the truth, this lawsuit is without merit and we are confident the courts will continue to uphold the established rules, which provide full constitutional due process and are designed to protect the rights of clean athletes and the integrity of sport," he said. The 40-year-old Armstrong has said the Union Cycliste Internationale, the international governing body of cycling, is the "only organization permitted to assess the evidence." He said he has taken at least 500 drug tests in his cycling career without failing one. Why fans shouldn't forgive Armstrong . Armstrong faces a lifetime ban and could be stripped of his Tour de France victories if found guilty by the USADA. Armstrong won the Tour each year from 1999 to 2005, most of those for a team sponsored by the U.S. Postal Service. He retired twice from cycling, -- first in 2005, for four years, and again in 2011. The USADA is a quasi-government agency recognized as the official anti-doping agency for Olympic, Pan American and Paralympic events in the United States. In a June letter to Armstrong, a copy of which was obtained by CNN, the agency said it collected blood samples from Armstrong in 2009 and 2010 that were "fully consistent with blood manipulation including EPO use and/or blood transfusions." EPO, or erythropoietin, boosts the number of red blood cells, which carry oxygen to the muscles. The letter accused Armstrong and five former cycling team associates engaged in a doping conspiracy from 1998 to 2011. If there is a hearing, riders will testify that Armstrong used EPO, blood transfusions, testosterone and masking agents, and that he distributed and administered drugs to other cyclists from 1998 to 2005, according to the letter. Armstrong has been dogged by allegations of drug abuse in recent years, with compatriot Floyd Landis -- who was found guilty of doping in the 2006 Tour de France, resulting in him being stripped of the title -- making a series of claims last year. Armstrong came out fighting in May 2011, in the face of fresh allegations made on the CBS News' "60 Minutes" show by another American, Tyler Hamilton. In the CBS interview, Hamilton, who retired in 2009 after twice testing positive himself, says he first saw Armstrong use EPO in 1999. "I saw it in his refrigerator," Hamilton told the news program. "I saw him inject it more than one time like we all did, like I did many, many times." In February, Justice Department prosecutors said they closed a criminal investigation after reviewing allegations against Armstrong. They had called witnesses to a federal grand jury in Los Angeles, but they apparently determined they lacked evidence to bring a charge that Armstrong used performance-enhancing drugs. Armstrong has won two half-distance Ironman events this year, and he is suspended from World Triathlon Corporation competitions. The world championships will be held in October in Hawaii. He was a U.S. triathlon champion as a teenager. CNN's Nick Valencia contributed to this report. | "When Judge Sparks speaks, I listen," Armstrong lawyer says . Court filings "are not press releases," a judge scolds Armstrong . The seven-time Tour de France winner faces doping charges . Armstrong says the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency is out to justify its existence by pursuing him . | ec048f816bd6142e90923c6685cd1f0053044b97 |
(CNN) -- Sharifa lost her foot when the Syrian jets swooped down and fired missiles at the house. Now the hijab-clad girl sits jaded in a dirty, hardscrabble displaced persons camp near Turkey, growing up fast, confused and far from home. CNN special coverage: Syria's refugees . She needs crutches to move around and weeps for her lost limb. "I can't get it back," she said. But like many youth, Sharifa is resilient. She teaches the younger kids at the camp mosque and, inshallah, wants to go back to her home village and do it there. Her life has been hijacked. She's consumed by hope and grief, determination and despair. "I just want to walk again," she says. "I just want to walk." Watch more of Sharifa's story . Sharifa is one of a lost generation uprooted by Syria's civil war. She's one of the casualties of what the International Rescue Committee is calling a "regional humanitarian disaster," the widespread displacement caused by nearly two years of civil strife and war in Syria. The IRC, one of the world's major refugee agencies, issued a chilling report Monday about the plight of refugees and internally displaced people. More than 2.5 million Syrians have been uprooted, the IRC says. Of those who have had to leave their homes, about 600,000 have fled, mostly to Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon and Iraq, which border Syria. It's a replay of the population flight out of war-torn Iraq last decade. It conjures the wrenching flight in the 1940s during the birth of Israel, also next door to Syria. "The Middle East is once again facing a human displacement tragedy," the IRC's commission on Syrian refugees said. The IRC interviewed refugees in the border nations and got a grim view of life in the country. Killings, attacks, arbitrary arrests, torture, abductions, rape, bombings and sexual violence. Loss of infrastructure and health care. Dwindling supplies of food, water and electricity. No school. More: Children scavenge for food . More than 60,000 people have died since the regime of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad cracked down on peaceful protesters, a stance that set in motion what has become a nightmare, a civil war between the unyielding government and tenacious rebels. The fighting has taken a sectarian overtone. The government is dominated by Alawites. The opposition, largely by Sunni Muslims. People from other groups and religions in the diverse country have been caught in the crossfire. Some have joined the rebels. Others support the government. Many sit tight and hope it ends. Others have fled to higher ground in Syria. Some to other countries. People have embarked on treacherous journeys to safety outside Syria, scurrying from Homs and Hama to Lebanon, Daraa to Jordan, Aleppo and Idlib to Turkey, and Syrian Kurdish neighborhoods to Iraq. Many live in camps, but most are "urban refugees," scattered through villages, towns and cities seeking shelter anywhere it is available. Some live with host families but others are packed into small, dingy and poorly maintained apartments. Some are squatters, staying put in schools, public buildings and unused spaces. "Every time it rains, we live in a pool of mud," said a 60-year-old woman from Daraa, interviewed by the IRC. She and seven others in Jordan share a room with a dirt floor and leaky roof. Women and girls have gone from the frying pan to the fire. Rape is a main reason why many refugees fled, but there is "an alarming lack of medical and counseling services" in their new homes, the report said. "They face unsafe conditions in camps and elevated levels of domestic violence, while reports of early and /or forced marriage of women and girls are increasing," the report said. Children are traumatized. "Abuse, neglect and exploitation" are risks that are right around the corner. In Turkey, 8-year-old refugee children make drawings, just like kids everywhere. The images? Scenes from home of bombs and terror. "Many teachers in host schools are ill-equipped to assist traumatized children -- as are their parents. Many children exhibit violent aggressive behavior," the report said, citing an IRC counselor in Jordan. "Others have stopped eating, talking and sleeping." More: Life in the camps . The IRC is telling the world it urgently needs solutions. Humanitarian aid must be increased. Borders must remain open. More assistance is needed for internally displaced Syrians. Urban refugees need more attention, and women and girls need better protection. The world also must prepare for fallout and instability, even if the al-Assad government is toppled. "The international community must quickly plan for a displacement crisis that could last well beyond the end of the Assad government and persist regardless of the political outcome of the conflict," the report said. Now winter is here. Aid agencies are bracing for more misery. One refugee in Lebanon said his family has spent the year living in a sheep shed. Now they face the punishment of winter: winds, cold, rain and snow. Even flooding. "I cry in my heart. I feel depressed. It's unjust," he said. "Is there a worse way to live than this?" In a camp near Turkey, Abdul Qadr al-Hasan's daughter, Siham, succumbed amid the frigid air. More: What's next for Syria? "She was not sick. She didn't have any problems at all. We were up late that night and we were playing with her," al-Hasan said, speaking in a tent. "We woke up the next morning, her mother checked on her. She was curled into a ball from the cold." Also near Turkey, Sharifa struggles on. More: How it all started . She says it is "God's will this happened." "The situation is hard here, nobody can bear this." Sharifa may be a limping casualty of war, but she and other young traumatized Syrians -- living in tents, crammed in apartments and hiding in villages and towns -- are now the country's future. They will limp home after the war ends to rebuild their land. "I don't want to play again," she said. "I just want to walk." Nick Paton Walsh and Joe Duran contributed to this report. | A new report says more than 2.5 million Syrians have been uprooted . Many are "urban refugees," scattered through towns seeking shelter . Aid agencies are calling for more help, especially for women and children . | f136b65ac6207a7acefb5b1b9b75f8065368e517 |
Southampton-based suppliers Reef Eden International have found demand is high for the new tanks . The accessory has a special system providing a circular current to allow the creatures to constantly float as they would in the sea . As well as making interesting pets, the moon jellyfish also create a 'living lava lamp' effect to jazz up home interiors . By . Lucy Waterlow . Jellyfish are becoming an unlikely new favourite pet in British homes after specialist fish tanks launched to house them have proved a sell out. MailOnline reported last month how a U.S. firm could ship the high-tech tanks to the UK - but now a supplier in Eastleigh, Southampton, have made it easier for British buyers to adopt the unusual creatures with the new Cubic Jellyfish Aquarium. Reef Eden International are distributing the novel tanks - which can house up to 12 non-stinging moon jellyfish - across the UK. And managing director Simon Garratt said demand has been so high they have already sold out and are struggling . to keep up with demand. Scroll down for video . Take them home: Moon jellyfish can now be kept as pets thanks to the development of new tanks . Accessorise: The tanks come with multi-coloured LED lights that can be altered to match the decoration of a room and create a living lava lamp effect . Mr Garratt explained how keeping jellyfish has pets has been made possible thanks to the accessory's special system that provides a circular current to allow the creatures to constantly float as they would in the sea. He said: 'Previously people couldn't keep them . because the aquariums weren't available, and they can't be kept in . normal fish tanks because jellyfish require a current to swim. Water flow: The £775 accessory has a special system that provides a circular current to allow the creatures to constantly float as they would in the sea . Unusual pets: Up to 12 moon jellyfish, which don't have stings, can be housed in the tanks and the water flow means they won't sink to the bottom or get stuck to the sides . 'If there is no current, the jellyfish would stick in the corners of the tank or settle on the bottom. 'The systems that were available before were one-offs for big aquariums. This meant it cost tens of thousands . of pounds for an organisation to have one made, but now we are . manufacturing 50 to 100 at a time, it has brought the cost down . massively.' However the tanks still don't come cheap as they cost £775 from aquarium shops while the moon jellyfish have to be purchased separately from special stockists at prices between £29.99-£39.99. 'Better than a sculpture': The creatures make an interesting addition to living or office space . In demand: Stockists Reef Eden have sold out of the tanks as people clamour to get them in their homes . Care: The jellyfish need to be fed once every one to two days with special food . As well as making interesting pets, jellyfish are being marketed as away to add decor to the home or office as the tank is illuminated by multicolour LED lights - giving the impression of 'a living lava lamp'. The company's website states that the 'illuminated aquatic artwork' of the jellyfish aquarium beats any expensive sculptures and paintings. Mr Garratt added: 'There are LED lights down the centre of the tank which can be set to different colours or go through the whole spectrum and light up the jellyfish like a living lava lamp. 'The look of the tank is very modern and works as a display and can appeal to a lot of people because it looks great and because it's low maintenance.' The jellyfish need to be fed once every one to two days with special food which can be placed through a section at the top of the tank. | Southampton-based suppliers Reef Eden International have found demand is high for the new tanks . The accessory has a special system providing a circular current to allow the creatures to constantly float as they would in the sea . As well as making interesting pets, the moon jellyfish also create a 'living lava lamp' effect to jazz up home interiors . | 33cff0fadb600de7a572c0d3de28838be8a080ea |
Facing bankruptcy, the U.S. Postal Service is pushing ahead with unprecedented cuts to first-class mail next spring that will slow delivery and, for the first time in 40 years, eliminate the chance for stamped letters to arrive the next day. The estimated $3billion in reductions, to be announced in broader detail on Monday, are part of a wide-ranging effort by the cash-strapped Postal Service to quickly trim costs, seeing no immediate help from Congress. The changes would provide short-term relief, but ultimately could prove counterproductive, pushing more of America's business onto the Internet. Save our post: Nearly 100,000 postal workers could lose their jobs in an unprecedented budget cut that would also halt next-day mail . They could slow everything from check payments to Netflix's DVDs-by-mail, add costs to mail-order prescription drugs, and threaten the existence of newspapers and time-sensitive magazines delivered by postal carrier to far-flung suburban and rural communities. That birthday card mailed first-class to Mom also could arrive a day or two late, if people don't plan ahead. 'It's a potentially major change, but I don't think consumers are focused on it and it won't register until the service goes away,' said Jim Corridore, analyst with S&P Capital IQ, who tracks the shipping industry. 'Over time, to the extent the customer service experience gets worse, it will only increase the shift away from mail to alternatives.' The cuts, now being finalized, would close roughly 250 of the nearly 500 mail processing centres across the country as early as next March. Because the consolidations typically would lengthen the distance mail travels from post office to processing centre, the agency also would lower delivery standards for first-class mail that have been in place since 1971. Currently, first-class mail is supposed to be delivered to homes and businesses within the continental U.S. in one day to three days. That will lengthen to two days to three days, meaning mailers no longer could expect next-day delivery in surrounding communities. Periodicals could take between two days and nine days. Deliver the letter: First-class mail will experience the downgrade as early as March in certain areas . About 42 per cent of first-class mail is now delivered the following day. An additional 27 per cent arrives in two days, about 31 per cent in three days and less than 1 per cent in four days to five days. Following the change next spring, about . 51 per cent of all first-class mail is expected to arrive in two days, . with most of the remainder delivered in three days. 'The things I have control over here at . the Postal Service, we have to do. If we do nothing, we will have a death . spiral.' -Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe . The consolidation of mail processing centres is in addition to the planned closing of about 3,700 local post offices. In all, roughly 100,000 postal employees could be cut as a result of the various closures, resulting in savings of up to $6.5billion a year. Expressing urgency to reduce costs, Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe said in an interview that the agency has to act while waiting for Congress to grant it authority to reduce delivery to five days a week, raise stamp prices and reduce health care and other labour costs. The Postal Service, an independent agency of government, does not receive tax money, but is subject to congressional control on large aspects of its operations. The changes in first-class mail delivery can go into place without permission from Congress. Better late than never: Time-sensitive materials like mailers and prescription drugs would take two to nine days to deliver if the new plan takes effect . After five years in the red, the post office faces imminent default this month on a $5.5billion annual payment to the Treasury for retiree health benefits. It is projected to have a record loss of $14.1billion next year amid steady declines in first-class mail volume. Mr Donahoe has said the agency must make cuts of $20 billion by 2015 to be profitable. It already has announced a 1-cent increase in first-class mail to 45 cents beginning January 22. 'We have a business model that is failing. You can't continue to run red ink and not make changes,' Mr Donahoe said. 'We know our business, and we listen to our customers. Customers are looking for affordable and consistent mail service, and they do not want us to take tax money.' Separate bills that have passed House and Senate committees would give the Postal Service more authority and liquidity to stave off immediate bankruptcy. But prospects are somewhat dim for final congressional action on those bills anytime soon, especially if the measures are seen in an election year as promoting layoffs and cuts to neighbourhood post offices. Industries hurt: Netflix, which delivers movies to some of its customers, could potentially suffer from the lag in mail delivery . Technically, the Postal Service must await an advisory opinion from the independent Postal Regulatory Commission before it can begin closing local post offices and processing centres. But such opinions are nonbinding, and Mr Donahoe is making clear the agency will proceed with reductions once the opinion is released next March. 'The things I have control over here at the Postal Service, we have to do,' he said, describing the cuts as a necessary business decision. 'If we do nothing, we will have a death spiral.' The Postal Service initially announced in September it was studying the possibility of closing the processing centres and published a notice in the Federal Register seeking comments. Within 30 days, the plan elicited nearly 4,400 public comments, mostly in opposition. Among them: . Maine Senator Susan Collins, the top Republican on the Senate committee that oversees the post office, believes the agency is taking the wrong approach. She says service cuts will only push more consumers to online bill payment or private carriers such as UPS or FedEx, leading to lower revenue in the future. 'Time and time again in the face of more red ink, the Postal Service puts forward ideas that could well accelerate its death spiral,' she said, urging passage of a bill that would refund nearly $7billion the Postal Service overpaid into a federal retirement fund, encourage a restructuring of health benefits and reduce the agency's annual payments into a retiree health account. That measure would postpone a move to five-day-a-week mail delivery for at least two years and require additional layers of review before the agency closed postal branches and mail processing centres. 'The solution to the Postal Service's financial crisis is not easy but must involve tackling more significant expenses that do not drive customers,' Miss Collins said. In the event of a shutdown due to bankruptcy, private companies such as FedEx and UPS could handle a small portion of the material the post office moves, but they do not go everywhere. No business has shown interest in delivering letters everywhere in the country for a set rate of 44 cents or 45 cents for a first-class letter. | Post office set to close 250 of nearly 500 mail processing centres as early as March . USPS would also lower delivery standards in place since 1971 . Roughly 100,000 postal workers could lose their jobs, saving USPS around $6.5B . Agency says it must cut $20B by 2015 to be profitable . Small-town mayors and legislators in states including Illinois, Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania cited the economic harm if postal offices were to close, eliminating jobs and reducing service. Small-business owners in many other states also were worried. ESPN The Magazine and Crain Communications, which prints some 27 trade and consumer publications, said delays to first-class delivery could ruin the value of their news. Their magazines are typically printed at week's end with mail arrival timed for weekend sports events or the Monday start of the work week. Newspapers, already struggling in the Internet age, also could suffer. AT&T, which mails approximately 55million customer billing statements each month, wants assurances that the Postal Service will widely publicize and educate the public about changes to avoid confusion over delivery that might lead to delinquent payments. The company is also concerned that after extensive cuts the Postal Service might realize it cannot meet a relaxed standard of two-to-three day delivery. Netflix, which offers monthly pricing plans for unlimited DVDs by mail, sent one disc or two at a time. Longer delivery times would mean fewer opportunities to receive discs each month, effectively a price increase. Netflix in recent months has been vigorously promoting its video streaming service as an alternative. | 9c0c1f57599c9c6967252fefa7acab3373a6111c |
(CNN) -- For award-winning Nigerian film director Obi Emelonye, the London premiere of "Last flight to Abuja" in early June was supposed to be a celebratory event, a marquee moment introducing his suspense-filled airplane disaster thriller to the rest of the world with pomp and grandeur. But then June 3rd happened. On that fateful Sunday, the Dana Air Flight 992 from the Nigerian capital of Abuja crashed into a densely populated neighborhood in Lagos, killing all 153 people aboard as well as at least 10 people on the ground. The tragic news left Emelonye, whose high-octane action movie is based on a series of fatal air crashes that stunned Nigeria in 2006, in a state of shock. "The coincidences and the timing of it was scary," he says. "This was five days to the London premiere that we've been building up to -- my first reaction was to cancel the premiere." Read related: Nigerians demand answers in wake of Dana Air crash . But after consulting his team, Nigerian officials and some of the families of the bereaved, Emelonye was convinced to go ahead with the original plan, using the movie to spotlight aviation safety in Nigeria. "They said 'no, this might end up being one of the longest lasting legacies to the lives of these people that were lost so needlessly in those crashes,'" he remembers. "This film was supposed to flag some of those issues that have now taken their lives, so it's in their interest that this story goes out there -- if for nothing, to put the issue of aviation safety squarely in the public agenda so that we don't forget." Five days later, in an emotional event attended by hundreds of people, Emelonye made sure the premiere was dedicated to the Dana Air crash victims -- attendees observed one minute of silence while the film's end credits were replaced by the names of those who lost their lives on that ill-fated flight. Emelonye says that "Last Flight to Abuja," written in 2007 and shot in November last year, has now become a campaign film, raising attention for safer flying in Nigeria and the rest of the continent. "The film has taken on added significance way beyond my planning," he explains. "It has become an advocacy ... for aviation safety, not just in Nigeria but for the whole of Africa, and it's a responsibility I take very seriously." Read related: 'Netflix of Africa' brings Nollywood to world . As a result, Emelonye says that some of the profits of the film will be donated to a fund dedicated to helping the families of the air crash victims. "We're trying to give back financially because we feel whatever profits from this film should go to, in some way, to continue the campaign for safer skies," he says. "In the absence of social security, there are people in dire hardship from that accident and we'll contribute something and kind of compel our partners to contribute also." At just 30 years old, Emelonye is one of the rising stars of Nigeria's booming movie-making industry, known as Nollywood. Passionate and self-taught, he left behind a career in law to follow his dream of becoming a filmmaker. He achieved critical and commercial acclaim last year with "The Mirror Boy," a fantasy/adventure film released all across the African continent and the UK. Read related: Veteran director reveals secrets of Nollywood's success . And now he is aiming for further success with "Last Flight to Abuja," a big-budget production starring many of Nollywood's biggest names. The 81-minute long film has already become a box office hit in Nigeria and is shown in screens across West Africa and in London. Emelonye says he hopes the movie, along with promoting civil aviation safety in Nigeria, will open up his country's burgeoning film industry to a wider audience, dismissing the low-quality tag that's often attached to Nollywood productions. "We have a film that has pushed the boundaries with Nollywood and introduced a new genre in Nollywood filmmaking," he says. Emelonye says Nollywood films are growing in popularity because they offer audiences a narrative they can connect to. "There's something I call the quintessential African voice, which has kind of given Nollywood, in spite of its qualitative problems, international attention -- it's watched across Africa, it's watched across the world, even though they're shot on very low quality cameras, very simplistic stories, they have a common connection with people that is great." | Obi Emelonye is the director of Nollywood's latest hit, "Last flight to Abuja" He uses the film to campaign for better civil aviation safety over African airspace . The high-octane thriller is currently playing across West Africa and in London . "We have a film that has pushed the boundaries with Nollywood," he says . | baec2b7ad98b75aeb2a6396616ab3f6d0a5314eb |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 14:15 EST, 9 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 15:29 EST, 9 December 2013 . A married mother allegedly posted sexually explicit photos and videos of her doctor after they ended their affair, it has emerged. Dolly Beattie, from Amelia, Ohio, claims that before she shared the intimate images on Facebook and YouTube, Terrence McCoy had told her colleagues information about her that got her fired. Now the spat is playing out in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court as Beattie, 48, sues McCoy, 51, - accusing him of taking advantage of his doctor status during their affair - while McCoy has filed his own protective order against her. In court documents, McCoy, who is also married, admits he was Beattie's doctor when they started an affair in September 2011 and he sent her suggestive videos and texts, Cincinnati.com reported. Court battle: Dolly Beattie allegedly posted explicit images of her doctor online following their affair . Beattie ended the affair and reported him to the State Medical Board of Ohio for having sex with a patient. She later dismissed it but the medical board continued to investigate before McCoy agreed to have his medical license permanently revoked in 2012. Beattie had similar troubles at work after the affair; she was fired shortly after from her job at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. She claimed that the jilted McCoy had called doctors and other hospital employees and gave them information that led to her losing her job. McCoy has admited in court documents that he called employees but said he did not tell them about their affair or have a part in her being fired. After she was fired, Beattie admits . that, on June 2, 2013, she posted graphic videos and photos the doctor . had sent her to Facebook and YouTube. Fired: She claims she lost her job at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (pictured) after the doctor, Terrence McCoy called staff there and spoke about her. Both parties have now sued the other . 'She snapped,' Beattie's attorney Mary Jill Donovan explained. 'She was so overwrought about what a dope she'd been and how he'd treated her.' Beattie quickly removed the posts but the doctor learned about them anyway. McCoy sued her, claiming that even though he had sent her the videos and photos, she violated his privacy by sharing them online. Lawyer Jon Garon, director of the Northern Kentucky University Law + Informatics Institute, told Cincinnati.com that he expects to see more and more cases of this type. 'The reason for its increase is convenience,' he said. 'The camera has become part of the bedroom.' The case returns to court December 17. | Dolly Beattie and Terrence McCoy started affair in September 2011 . But after breaking it off, she reported him to the State Medical Board of Ohio and he ultimately lost his license to practice medicine . He 'called her colleagues and told them information that got her fired' She then posted explicit images he had sent her to Facebook and YouTube - before quickly taking them down . Now Beattie and McCoy are both suing each other . | acaa7140d3417cb0cb3fdbf615fe8c8c2c4db72a |
By . LUCY OSBORNE . PUBLISHED: . 05:22 EST, 5 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 06:36 EST, 5 January 2013 . The Girl Guides are considering dropping their oath to God and the Queen, in one of the biggest shake-ups in their 102-year history. Girlguiding UK, the parent organisation which encompasses the Guides, Brownies and Rainbows, has launched a consultation that could see significant changes to the pledge girls take on joining. The organisation's new chief executive, Julie Bentley, said yesterday: 'The promise has been part of the Girl Guides since its beginning – it is crucial and unique. Girlguiding UK, the parent organisation which encompasses the Guides, Brownies and Rainbows, is considering dropping their oath to God and the Queen . 'We know from listening to our members that some people do find some parts of the oath challenging, and when members do make that oath we want them to mean it and believe it. 'Times do change, the world has changed and the way people view the world has changed. Our response is not to be stuck in a rigid way, but to respond to the needs of our membership.' She told the Guardian that this was 'in no way a watering down of our values or moral compass'. 'Some people could be uncomfortable with a change, others might be encouraged,' she added. The move follows a similar consultation by the Scout Association, which is also considering providing an alternative promise to welcome atheists as full members after complaints from parents and campaigners. Long association: The Queen when she was still Princess Elizabeth in the 1940s, with a patrol leader in the Buckingham Palace Company of the Girl Guides. The Guides are now considering dropping their oath . The Queen charms Girl Guides who turned out to greet her in near freezing weather at Matlock Station, Derbyshire, in 1985 . The consultation, which will close on March 3, is open both to members of the organisation and those outside it. Guides currently promise to do their best, love 'my God', serve 'the Queen and country' and keep the Guides' law. But the consultation exercise asks for opinions on a range of alternatives. Girlguiding UK has 538,247 members, including 63,000 trained volunteers. But last year more than 50,000 girls were on waiting lists to join because of a lack of leaders. | Girlguiding UK launches . consultation on changes to pledge girls take . Organisation's new chief says it is 'in no way a watering down of our values or moral compass' | eededafe4316f65aa2c36185c870df74d6054cb0 |
With just hours to go until the January transfer window closes at 11pm on Monday, Sportsmail's Simon Jones gives you the lowdown on every Premier League club — who is needed to come in and who needs to be shown the exit door. ARSENAL . What they need: Signing a defensive midfielder remains a priority for Arsene Wenger, while he still requires a left back and a goalkeeper to challenge for the No 1 spot . Who’s in the frame: Moussa Sissoko (Newcastle) Who could go: Chuba Akpom . Newcastle midfielder Moussa Sissoko has been linked with a January move to Arsenal . ASTON VILLA . What they need: New signings all over the pitch — a centre back, midfielder and striker . Who’s in the frame: Delle Ali (MK Dons), Etienne Capoue (Tottenham), Demba Ba (Besiktas) Who could go: Antonio Luna . Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert may decide to make a late move for former Chelsea striker Demba Ba . BURNLEY . What they need: A midfielder and a striker to add the goal-scoring threat they have lacked so far . Who’s in the frame: Stuart Armstrong (Dundee United), Graham Dorrans (West Bromwich Albion), Anthony Stokes (Celtic) Who could go: Lukas Jutkiewicz . Celtic striker Anthony Stokes has caught the attention of Burnley boss Sean Dyche . CHELSEA . What they need: Midfielder and a striker . Who’s in the frame: Douglas Costa (Shakhtar), Enner Valencia (West Ham) Who could go: Andre Schurrle (Wolfsburg), Mohamed Salah (Fiorentina, on loan), Stipe Perica (Udinese, loan) Enner Valencia, pictured with Martin Skrtel, could seal a move across London to Chelsea . CRYSTAL PALACE . What they need: Alan Pardew wants to bring in a striker. A midfielder and winger would also boost his attacking options . Who’s in the frame: Stephane Mbia (Sevilla), C-Y Lee (Bolton), Rudy Gestede (Blackburn) Who could go: Jack Hunt (loan, Rotherham) Blackburn Rovers forward Rudy Gestede remains on Crystal Palace's radar . EVERTON . What they need: Changes at the front and the back of the team, with a winger and goalkeeper . Who’s in the frame: Orjan Nyland (Molde), Jese (Real Madrid) Who could go: Tyias Browning (loan) Roberto Martinez could make a move for fellow countryman Jese before the transfer window slams shut . HULL CITY . What they need: A winger and a striker to improve their firepower after scoring 20 goals in 23 games . Who’s in the frame: Aaron Lennon (Tottenham), Dame N’Doye (Lokomotiv Moscow) Who could go: Harry Maguire (loan), Tom Ince (loan) Hull City manager Steve Bruce is hoping to conclude a deal for Tottenham winger Aaron Lennon . LEICESTER . What they need: Midfielder and a centre-back to give them hope of avoiding relegation from top flight . Who’s in the frame: Robert Huth (Stoke, loan), Lex Immers (Feyenoord) Who could go: Chris Wood . Robert Huth, pictured in August 2013, is expected to leave Stoke City before Monday's 11pm deadline . LIVERPOOL . What they need: A goalkeeper, a striker and midfielder to help inspire their push for a Champions League place . Who’s in the frame: Danny Ings (Burnley), Demarai Gray (Birmingham) Who could go: Rickie Lambert (West Brom) Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers is said to be a big fan of Burnley's Danny Ings . MANCHESTER CITY . What they need: Defender, midfielder . Who’s in the frame: Jose Giminez (A Madrid), Kevin de Bruyne (Wolfsburg), Paul Pogba (Juventus), Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund) Who could go: Bruno Zuculini (Loan, Cordoba), John Guidetti (Celtic) Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba could seal a sensational switch to Manchester City . MANCHESTER UNITED . What they need: Defensive additions at right back and centre back, a winger and striker . Who’s in the frame: Marquinhos (PSG), Mats Hummels (Dortmund), Kevin De Bruyne (Wolfsburg) Who could go: Anderson, Tyler Blackett (loan) Mats Hummels and Kevin De Bruyne are among the players on Louis van Gaal's January wishlist . NEWCASTLE . What they need: Striker and centre back but will owner Mike Ashley give caretaker coach John Carver the green light to bring in players? Who’s in the frame: Dele Alli (MK Dons) Who could go: Cheick Tiote . Several Premier League sides are monitoring MK Dons youngster Dele Alli . QPR . What they need: More goals. A striker, winger and midfielder. Who’s in the frame: Marco Borriello (AC Milan), Bakary Sako (Wolves), Josh King (Blackburn), Jose M’Poku (Standard Liege) Who could go: Junior Hoilett, Adel Taarabt . Harry Redknapp could make a late dash for former Manchester United striker Josh King . SOUTHAMPTON . What they need: Midfielders to help take the scoring load off striker Graziano Pelle . Who’s in the frame: Tonny Vilhena (Feyenoord), Filip Djuricic (Benfica) Who could go: Dani Osvaldo (Juventus, loan) Ronald Koeman may raid former side Feyenoord for Dutch midfielder Tonny Vilhena . STOKE CITY . What they need: Winger and striker to maintain their hopes of achieving a top-half finish in the Premier League and further progress in the FA Cup . Who’s in the frame: Adama Traore, Sandro Ramirez (both Barcelona) Who could go: Wilson Palacios . Barcelona starlet Adama Traore could be in line for a move to Stoke City . SUNDERLAND . What they need: Despite the addition of England’s Jermain Defoe, another forward to help steer them clear of relegation trouble . Who’s in the frame: Diego de Girolamo (Sheff Utd) Who could go: Charis Mavrias (Panathinaikos) Diego de Girolamo, pictured scoring in the FA Cup against Preston, is a target for Sunderland . SWANSEA . What they need: Left back and striker after bolstering their midfield by signing Jack Cork from Southampton for an undisclosed fee . Who’s in the frame: Rudy Gestede (Blackburn), Martin Olsson (Norwich) Who could go: Neil Taylor (West Brom), Bafetimbi Gomis . Norwich full back Martin Olsson could replace Neil Taylor at the Liberty Stadium . TOTTENHAM . What they need: Striker, midfielder . Who’s in the frame: Adrien Rabiot (PSG), Danny Ings (Burnley), Seydou Doumbia (CSKA), Yevhen Konoplyanka (Dnipro) Who could go: Paulinho, Etienne Capoue, Aaron Lennon, Emmanuel Adebayor, Vlad Chiriches . Yevhen Konoplyanka could be the man to replace the outgoing Lennon at White Hart Lane . WEST BROM . What they need: Left back, midfielder, winger, striker to stop a worrying slide towards the drop zone . Who’s in the frame: Neil Taylor (Swansea), Etienne Capoue (WBA), Rickie Lambert (Liverpool), Demba Ba (Besiktas) Who could go: Ideye Brown, Chris Baird . Tony Pulis wants to sign Rickie Lambert if Liverpool make the Saints star available for transfer . WEST HAM . What they need: Winger to fire in crosses for Andy Carroll . Who’s in the frame: Opa N’Guette (Valenciennes), Darren Fletcher (Man Utd) Who could go: Enner Valencia, Matt Jarvis, Carlton Cole, Mark Noble . West Ham could still finalise a deal for Darren Fletcher despite being unable to agree personal terms . | Paul Pogba has been linked with a shock move to Manchester City . Manchester United remain keen on signing Dortmund's Mats Hummels . Kevin De Bruyne is attracting interest from Man United and Man City . | 2ff6248fa2372d9b06014a6e5026246d718d2d2e |
Dave Foley and Dominic Ryan will make their Test debuts against Georgia on Sunday in an Ireland team showing 13 changes from last weekend's victory over South Africa. Munster's Robin Copeland will win his first cap if he joins the Dublin fray from the bench, while fit-again Gordon D'Arcy returns at centre. The highly-experienced D'Arcy will partner Ulster's Darren Cave in midfield, with Robbie Henshaw and Jared Payne both rested. Ireland's Dave Foley trains at Carton House Hotel, Kildare in the run up to his Test debut against Georgia . Dominic Ryan will also make his Ireland debut after being called into a team which features 13 changes . Payne is still battling his suspected foot sprain, but he would not have featured in any case if fit. Only tighthead prop Mike Ross and wing Simon Zebo have been retained in the starting XV from last Saturday's 29-15 victory over the Springboks. Cave has fallen behind Payne in the Ulster pecking order, with the former New Zealand Under 21 cap preferred this term at outside centre. Cave decried his lack of Ireland chances in 2013, claiming his 'face doesn't fit', while head coach Joe Schmidt hotly refuted influencing provincial selection earlier this term when Payne was switched from full-back to 13. Munster lock Foley slots in alongside Leinster's Mike McCarthy at lock, with captain Paul O'Connell rested and Devin Toner on the bench. Tommy Bowe is congratulated by Simon Zebo after scoring a try for Ireland in their 29-15 win over South Africa . The 26-year-old Foley has six caps for Emerging Ireland, after making his senior Munster debut in 2010. Leinster's 24-year-old flanker Ryan starts at six despite being a more natural openside, partnering Tommy O'Donnell and Robbie Diack in an all-new back-row combination. Eoin Reddan will captain the side for the first time from scrum-half, with Leinster club-mate Ian Madigan at 10. Munster playmaker Ian Keatley covers fly-half from the bench, with Johnny Sexton and Conor Murray among the multitude not pressed into service. | Dave Foley and Dominic Ryan come into side which defeated South Africa . Ireland hope to follow 29-15 win with Aviva Stadium triumph vs Georgia . | 37822fcdf9629c2d6b7ff1137ee58cbf2ce14c47 |
By . James Rush . A radiator sales director called Phil Neville was told to die and get cancer as he received a torrent of abuse on Twitter intended for his namesake following his commentary during England's World Cup opener with Italy. Former football referee Mr Neville, 60, said he received at least 1,000 tweets as Twitter users got him mixed up with the ex-Manchester United and Everton footballer. BBC commentator Neville has been criticised for his lack of emotion and 'monotone' style during the game on Saturday. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Radiator sales director Phil Neville (left) received a torrent of abuse on Twitter intended for his ex-footballer namesake (right) following his commentary during England's World Cup opener with Italy . Mr Neville, 60, said he received at least 1,000 tweets as Twitter users got him mixed up with the ex-Manchester United and Everton footballer . Mr Neville, of Hadleigh, Suffolk, has now offered to do a job swap with his football commentator namesake after he got caught up in the crossfire. Twitter users confused his Twitter handle, @philneville, with that of the ex-footballer, @fizzer18. Mr Neville said: 'I haven’t gone to the police because it’s not for me, but there are some very sad people out there.' He went on to say: 'Some tweets said "I hope you die" and "I hope you get cancer".' Mr Neville said he went out to watch the match with friends and left his phone at home. His mobile phone had been going off all night with alerts but Mr Neville went to bed and ignored them until the next morning. Ex-footballer Phil Neville has welcomed the feedback on his first live commentary and insisted the criticism 'will only make me better' 'I reckon I’ve had about 1,000 tweets,' he said. 'This weekend has been unbelievable, just unreal. There were a lot of Fs and Cs, particularly from Liverpool fans, but for me it’s been more fun than abusive. 'I just don’t take any notice. 'A few have said sorry when they have realised and have seen the funny side too. 'I have been able to laugh at it, it has been amusing and it just keeps getting funnier. 'Apparently he has said he will try to do better so I am sure my phone will come alive again.' Mr Neville, who played football before becoming a referee, has joked that he is available for commentary work. Since then he has been offered a possible opportunity to commentate on England's game against Uruguay on Thursday. 'I don't know what will come of it but I know a bit about football so who knows, maybe I could do a decent job,' he said. Mr Neville, who was the fourth official at a few Premier League matches in the 1990s, said he enjoyed watching the football match on Saturday. He said: 'I must admit that when listening in the first-half I didn’t realise it was Phil Neville, but he was terrible. 'It was only when they went back to the commentary team for the second-half and they said it was him that I realised - and I couldn’t believe it.' Some fans linked physio Gary Lewin's injury to Neville's performance in the commentary box . South Warwickshire police joined others on Twitter mocking BBC co-commentator Phil Neville . The ex-footballer Neville has welcomed the feedback on his first live commentary and insisted the criticism 'will only make me better'. He admitted the job is harder than he thought after hundreds of viewers complained about his on-air performance. A BBC spokeswoman said there were 445 complaints after Saturday night’s game, which pulled in a peak audience of 15.6 million viewers. Neville, 37, told Radio 5 Live yesterday: 'I think the biggest thing I learned is that co-commentary is harder than what I thought it was going to be. 'I welcome all the feedback you get and it's a welcome to the social media so you come in after a game you're hyped up, its just like playing doing a co-commentary, you're focused for 90 minutes, you turn your phone on and you’re getting some lovely messages. 'But I’m really looking forward to the game on Thursday, I’m back in the co-commentary booth and I will get better. It was my first live gig and I'm just glad I helped everybody sleep back home.' Neville, who said he 'really loved' working as a commentator, said: 'The feedback is [that] the content I put out was quite good, obviously the feedback is I need to show a little more excitement so I think you’ll see that on Thursday night.' | Radiator sales director received 1,000 tweets intended for ex-footballer . He said some of the tweets said 'I hope you die' and 'I hope you get cancer' He hasn't gone to police but said 'there are some very sad people out there' Mr Neville has now offered to do a job swap with the commentator for England's next match against Uruguay . | 3062541a98973ea2c136e8da5d8455260120f4cb |
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