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indian <tsp> ( cnn ) -- narain karthikeyan is to return to formula one this season after signing for the hispania team . karthikeyan , the first indian to race in f1 , will be returning the circuit after a six- year absence . it 's been a while in the making , but i am extremely happy to be racing again in formula 1 in 2011 , ' he told the spanish team 's official website . i am confident that i still have the pace , the fitness and the will to succeed in formula 1 . i 'm also looking forward to racing at the first ever indian grand prix in october , ' added the 33-year-old . karthikeyan , dubbed the fastest indian in the world ' raced for the now defunct jordan team in 2005 and was a test driver for williams in the following two seasons . since then he has competed for india in the world cup of motorsport series and he has raced in the le mans 24-hour classic , finishing seventh . hispania principal colin kolles hopes that karthikeyan 's previous experience help can help his team . i have known narain for a long time and he can revert to the experiences he gained when he was competing for jordan grand prix and as reserve driver for williams . i am sure that his experience and speed will be very useful for the team during the season . ' hispania finished 11th out of 12th in their first season in 2010 . they have yet to announce who will drive alongside karthikeyan but have said bruno senna , who competed last year , is not in the line-up . in other motorsport news friday , defending champion carlos sainz of spain edged volkswagen teammate nasser al-attiyah by just nine seconds to take the dakar rally sixth stage and increase his overall lead . but three-time winner stephane peterhansel , who won the fifth stage , lost nearly 13 minutes after a puncture . former double world rally champion . ruben faria of portugal , riding a ktm , took the motorbike honors with marc coma of spain continuing to lead overall . | karthikeyan was the first indian to compete in f1 back in 2005 |
alexander skarsgard <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the race to the south pole is off -- although the trek still continues for prince harry and teams of wounded veterans . ed parker , the expedition director of the virgin money south pole allied challenge , revealed saturday that he 'd made the decision to call off the competition among three teams to reach the pole after five days . the reason for this is entirely simple -- safety , which remains the core principal of our expeditions , ' parker said in a statement . it was n't bad weather that led to the decision , and parker even said that all three teams were progressing well ' over the first five days . rather , it was the fact that the mission -- especially as a competition -- was putting undue strain on the participants . it was becoming evident that there was a higher degree of stress imposed on the team members , due to unprecedented terrain on the plateau , ' said parker , a former british soldier who co-founded walking with the wounded in 2010 . prince harry -- himself a member of britain 's armed forces , having served in afghanistan and elsewhere -- has had a long association with this charity . in several ways , he 's been preparing for this latest mission for a long time . that includes taking part in a walking with the wounded expedition to the north pole -- even plunging into the arctic ocean 's freezing waters -- in 2011 before withdrawing to attend his brother william 's wedding . more recently , he traveled to iceland for training and even spent 24 hours in an industrial freezer in preparation for the south pole race . yet , while harry may be the only royal in antarctica , he 's hardly the only celebrity . swedish actor and true blood ' star alexander skarsgard is an honorary member of the u.s. team , while dominic west , perhaps best known for his role as mcnulty in the wire , ' joins veterans wounded in combat from the commonwealth nations of canada and australia . still , the stars -- and focus of the event -- are the veterans themselves . the three teams of seven participants each represent the united kingdom , united states and the commonwealth , which consists of several countries long affiliated with the british empire . the plan was to trek more than 200 miles ( 322 kilometers ) across the sparse continent , in temperatures as low as -35 degrees celsius ( -31 fahrenheit ) . and that 's still the plan ; it 's just that they wo n't be racing . the participants on sunday are set to resuming the walk , hoping to traverse the 70 remaining miles to the south pole with no stress being placed on the teams ... enabling them all to do this in their own time , ' parker explained . parker said he expects them all to reach that , by friday or saturday of next week , all of them will be at the finish celebrating . ' cnn 's pierre meilhan , max foster and susannah cullinane contributed to this report . | prince harry , alexander skarsgard participate alongside wounded vets |
lake <tsp> ( cnn ) -- up to 30 million people are facing a humanitarian disaster ' as one of africa 's biggest lakes shrinks , a united nations agency warned thursday . porters remove goods from a boat on lake chad in 2007 . lake chad was about the size of maryland -- bigger than israel or kuwait -- in 1963 , satellite images show . by 2001 , it covered less than one-fifth of that area -- making it smaller than delaware or mauritius . the drying-up of the shallow lake is fueling conflict and migration , the u.n. 's food and agriculture organization said . once one of the biggest bodies of water in the world , it could disappear entirely in about 20 years , the fao said , citing forecasts from the u.s. national aeronautics and space administration . if that happens it 's going to be a disaster , ' parviz koohafkan , director of the land and water division of the fao , told cnn by phone from rome . the lake chad basin is one of the most important agriculture heritage sites in the world -- the biodiversity , the migratory birds , not to mention more than 20 million people living out of lake chad -- fisherpeople , farmers . ' it would be a human disaster , a tragedy , ' he said . in this case we have people who are the poorest of the poor . ' in addition to an approximately 60 percent decline in fish production , there has been degradation of pasturelands , leading to a shortage of animal feed estimated at 45 percent in certain places in 2006 , reduction in livestock and biodiversity , ' the agency said . the disappearance of the lake is being caused by climate change , population pressure and natural variations in climate , the fao said . two rivers which feed the lake , the chari and logone , have been significantly reduced in the past 40 years , the agency said . the organization will unveil the results of a study into the diversion of the oubangui river in an effort to help lake chad at a conference , saving lake chad , ' in rome , italy , on friday . water transfer is not a new thing , ' koohafkan told cnn . the major problem is that this is water transfer among different countries . these options cost money , and need policy work , need technical work , ' he said . some kind of public-private partnership would be needed ' to pay for any solution as ambitious as diverting a river . the lake borders on cameroon , chad , niger and nigeria , one of africa 's most populous countries . it measured about 25,000 square kilometers ( 9,652 square miles ) in 1963 and 1,500 square kilometers ( 579 square miles ) in 2001 -- just under 17 percent its size 38 years earlier . lake chad is only one of many inland bodies of water which are drying up . similar warnings have been issued about lakes in mexico , russia and elsewhere . | lake supports livelihoods of 30 million people |
lake <tsp> ( cnn ) -- up to 30 million people are facing a humanitarian disaster ' as one of africa 's biggest lakes shrinks , a united nations agency warned thursday . porters remove goods from a boat on lake chad in 2007 . lake chad was about the size of maryland -- bigger than israel or kuwait -- in 1963 , satellite images show . by 2001 , it covered less than one-fifth of that area -- making it smaller than delaware or mauritius . the drying-up of the shallow lake is fueling conflict and migration , the u.n. 's food and agriculture organization said . once one of the biggest bodies of water in the world , it could disappear entirely in about 20 years , the fao said , citing forecasts from the u.s. national aeronautics and space administration . if that happens it 's going to be a disaster , ' parviz koohafkan , director of the land and water division of the fao , told cnn by phone from rome . the lake chad basin is one of the most important agriculture heritage sites in the world -- the biodiversity , the migratory birds , not to mention more than 20 million people living out of lake chad -- fisherpeople , farmers . ' it would be a human disaster , a tragedy , ' he said . in this case we have people who are the poorest of the poor . ' in addition to an approximately 60 percent decline in fish production , there has been degradation of pasturelands , leading to a shortage of animal feed estimated at 45 percent in certain places in 2006 , reduction in livestock and biodiversity , ' the agency said . the disappearance of the lake is being caused by climate change , population pressure and natural variations in climate , the fao said . two rivers which feed the lake , the chari and logone , have been significantly reduced in the past 40 years , the agency said . the organization will unveil the results of a study into the diversion of the oubangui river in an effort to help lake chad at a conference , saving lake chad , ' in rome , italy , on friday . water transfer is not a new thing , ' koohafkan told cnn . the major problem is that this is water transfer among different countries . these options cost money , and need policy work , need technical work , ' he said . some kind of public-private partnership would be needed ' to pay for any solution as ambitious as diverting a river . the lake borders on cameroon , chad , niger and nigeria , one of africa 's most populous countries . it measured about 25,000 square kilometers ( 9,652 square miles ) in 1963 and 1,500 square kilometers ( 579 square miles ) in 2001 -- just under 17 percent its size 38 years earlier . lake chad is only one of many inland bodies of water which are drying up . similar warnings have been issued about lakes in mexico , russia and elsewhere . | climate change , population pressure fuel lake 's decline , agency says |
lake <tsp> ( cnn ) -- up to 30 million people are facing a humanitarian disaster ' as one of africa 's biggest lakes shrinks , a united nations agency warned thursday . porters remove goods from a boat on lake chad in 2007 . lake chad was about the size of maryland -- bigger than israel or kuwait -- in 1963 , satellite images show . by 2001 , it covered less than one-fifth of that area -- making it smaller than delaware or mauritius . the drying-up of the shallow lake is fueling conflict and migration , the u.n. 's food and agriculture organization said . once one of the biggest bodies of water in the world , it could disappear entirely in about 20 years , the fao said , citing forecasts from the u.s. national aeronautics and space administration . if that happens it 's going to be a disaster , ' parviz koohafkan , director of the land and water division of the fao , told cnn by phone from rome . the lake chad basin is one of the most important agriculture heritage sites in the world -- the biodiversity , the migratory birds , not to mention more than 20 million people living out of lake chad -- fisherpeople , farmers . ' it would be a human disaster , a tragedy , ' he said . in this case we have people who are the poorest of the poor . ' in addition to an approximately 60 percent decline in fish production , there has been degradation of pasturelands , leading to a shortage of animal feed estimated at 45 percent in certain places in 2006 , reduction in livestock and biodiversity , ' the agency said . the disappearance of the lake is being caused by climate change , population pressure and natural variations in climate , the fao said . two rivers which feed the lake , the chari and logone , have been significantly reduced in the past 40 years , the agency said . the organization will unveil the results of a study into the diversion of the oubangui river in an effort to help lake chad at a conference , saving lake chad , ' in rome , italy , on friday . water transfer is not a new thing , ' koohafkan told cnn . the major problem is that this is water transfer among different countries . these options cost money , and need policy work , need technical work , ' he said . some kind of public-private partnership would be needed ' to pay for any solution as ambitious as diverting a river . the lake borders on cameroon , chad , niger and nigeria , one of africa 's most populous countries . it measured about 25,000 square kilometers ( 9,652 square miles ) in 1963 and 1,500 square kilometers ( 579 square miles ) in 2001 -- just under 17 percent its size 38 years earlier . lake chad is only one of many inland bodies of water which are drying up . similar warnings have been issued about lakes in mexico , russia and elsewhere . | lake chad could dry up in 20 years , u.n. 's food and agriculture organization says |
lake <tsp> ( cnn ) -- up to 30 million people are facing a humanitarian disaster ' as one of africa 's biggest lakes shrinks , a united nations agency warned thursday . porters remove goods from a boat on lake chad in 2007 . lake chad was about the size of maryland -- bigger than israel or kuwait -- in 1963 , satellite images show . by 2001 , it covered less than one-fifth of that area -- making it smaller than delaware or mauritius . the drying-up of the shallow lake is fueling conflict and migration , the u.n. 's food and agriculture organization said . once one of the biggest bodies of water in the world , it could disappear entirely in about 20 years , the fao said , citing forecasts from the u.s. national aeronautics and space administration . if that happens it 's going to be a disaster , ' parviz koohafkan , director of the land and water division of the fao , told cnn by phone from rome . the lake chad basin is one of the most important agriculture heritage sites in the world -- the biodiversity , the migratory birds , not to mention more than 20 million people living out of lake chad -- fisherpeople , farmers . ' it would be a human disaster , a tragedy , ' he said . in this case we have people who are the poorest of the poor . ' in addition to an approximately 60 percent decline in fish production , there has been degradation of pasturelands , leading to a shortage of animal feed estimated at 45 percent in certain places in 2006 , reduction in livestock and biodiversity , ' the agency said . the disappearance of the lake is being caused by climate change , population pressure and natural variations in climate , the fao said . two rivers which feed the lake , the chari and logone , have been significantly reduced in the past 40 years , the agency said . the organization will unveil the results of a study into the diversion of the oubangui river in an effort to help lake chad at a conference , saving lake chad , ' in rome , italy , on friday . water transfer is not a new thing , ' koohafkan told cnn . the major problem is that this is water transfer among different countries . these options cost money , and need policy work , need technical work , ' he said . some kind of public-private partnership would be needed ' to pay for any solution as ambitious as diverting a river . the lake borders on cameroon , chad , niger and nigeria , one of africa 's most populous countries . it measured about 25,000 square kilometers ( 9,652 square miles ) in 1963 and 1,500 square kilometers ( 579 square miles ) in 2001 -- just under 17 percent its size 38 years earlier . lake chad is only one of many inland bodies of water which are drying up . similar warnings have been issued about lakes in mexico , russia and elsewhere . | in 2001 , lake was one-fifth of 1963 size |
new jersey <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in an effort to galvanize support for a new pair of rail tunnels connecting new york and new jersey , two u.s. senators from the garden state announced monday that amtrak would bear some of the costs . the $ 13.5 billion gateway tunnel project would add high-speed and commuter rail service between the two states by 2020 , replacing an earlier project that new jersey gov . chris christie , a republican , rejected after citing budget concerns . new jersey is facing a transportation crisis , ' sen. frank r. lautenberg said monday . he said residents were fed up ' with train delays and endless traffic ' on new jersey highways . lautenberg joined fellow democratic sen. robert menendez and amtrak president joseph boardman at the pennsylvania rail station in newark , new jersey , saying the government-owned rail corporation would spend $ 50 million to begin preliminary engineering and design , according to a press release from lautenberg 's office . it is a critical first step that we can take now to bring 220 mph amtrak high-speed service to the northeast corridor , ' said boardman , according to the release . amtrak was not immediately available to verify the proposed spending plan . christie rejected a similar project in october after no agreement was reached on terms that would assure new jersey 's taxpayers would not pay more than $ 2.7 billion for a completed trans hudson express arc project . ' the question is who 's going to pay for it , ' said new york mayor michael bloomberg . gov . christie said that there was obligations potentially for the taxpayers of new jersey that he did n't feel they should shoulder . ' that 's his decision to make , ' bloomberg added . the access to the region 's core project , also known as the trans hudson express arc project , would have created 6,000 jobs , with federal cost estimates ranging between $ 9.8 billion and $ 12.7 billion . lautenberg was among its proponents and led public criticism against the governor 's decision to put the project on hold and ultimately cancel it . the critical difference to arc is that gateway will add far less capacity for new jersey transit , though still a considerable amount , ' said martin robins , a former director of new jersey transit 's waterfront transportation office . the operators would be a lot happier having arc-lite than nothing . ' but the state also is facing a projected budget gap of $ 10.5 billion for the next fiscal year . the new jersey governor has made deficit reduction a cornerstone of his administration , pushing cuts to education , local governments and mass transit and tackling state pension plans and benefits packages for public-sector workers . christie is expected to deliver his annual budget presentation february 22 . cnn 's raelyn johnson contributed to this report . | sen. frank r. lautenberg : new jersey is facing a transportation crisis ' |
new jersey <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in an effort to galvanize support for a new pair of rail tunnels connecting new york and new jersey , two u.s. senators from the garden state announced monday that amtrak would bear some of the costs . the $ 13.5 billion gateway tunnel project would add high-speed and commuter rail service between the two states by 2020 , replacing an earlier project that new jersey gov . chris christie , a republican , rejected after citing budget concerns . new jersey is facing a transportation crisis , ' sen. frank r. lautenberg said monday . he said residents were fed up ' with train delays and endless traffic ' on new jersey highways . lautenberg joined fellow democratic sen. robert menendez and amtrak president joseph boardman at the pennsylvania rail station in newark , new jersey , saying the government-owned rail corporation would spend $ 50 million to begin preliminary engineering and design , according to a press release from lautenberg 's office . it is a critical first step that we can take now to bring 220 mph amtrak high-speed service to the northeast corridor , ' said boardman , according to the release . amtrak was not immediately available to verify the proposed spending plan . christie rejected a similar project in october after no agreement was reached on terms that would assure new jersey 's taxpayers would not pay more than $ 2.7 billion for a completed trans hudson express arc project . ' the question is who 's going to pay for it , ' said new york mayor michael bloomberg . gov . christie said that there was obligations potentially for the taxpayers of new jersey that he did n't feel they should shoulder . ' that 's his decision to make , ' bloomberg added . the access to the region 's core project , also known as the trans hudson express arc project , would have created 6,000 jobs , with federal cost estimates ranging between $ 9.8 billion and $ 12.7 billion . lautenberg was among its proponents and led public criticism against the governor 's decision to put the project on hold and ultimately cancel it . the critical difference to arc is that gateway will add far less capacity for new jersey transit , though still a considerable amount , ' said martin robins , a former director of new jersey transit 's waterfront transportation office . the operators would be a lot happier having arc-lite than nothing . ' but the state also is facing a projected budget gap of $ 10.5 billion for the next fiscal year . the new jersey governor has made deficit reduction a cornerstone of his administration , pushing cuts to education , local governments and mass transit and tackling state pension plans and benefits packages for public-sector workers . christie is expected to deliver his annual budget presentation february 22 . cnn 's raelyn johnson contributed to this report . | new jersey is facing a projected $ 10.5 billion deficit |
new jersey <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in an effort to galvanize support for a new pair of rail tunnels connecting new york and new jersey , two u.s. senators from the garden state announced monday that amtrak would bear some of the costs . the $ 13.5 billion gateway tunnel project would add high-speed and commuter rail service between the two states by 2020 , replacing an earlier project that new jersey gov . chris christie , a republican , rejected after citing budget concerns . new jersey is facing a transportation crisis , ' sen. frank r. lautenberg said monday . he said residents were fed up ' with train delays and endless traffic ' on new jersey highways . lautenberg joined fellow democratic sen. robert menendez and amtrak president joseph boardman at the pennsylvania rail station in newark , new jersey , saying the government-owned rail corporation would spend $ 50 million to begin preliminary engineering and design , according to a press release from lautenberg 's office . it is a critical first step that we can take now to bring 220 mph amtrak high-speed service to the northeast corridor , ' said boardman , according to the release . amtrak was not immediately available to verify the proposed spending plan . christie rejected a similar project in october after no agreement was reached on terms that would assure new jersey 's taxpayers would not pay more than $ 2.7 billion for a completed trans hudson express arc project . ' the question is who 's going to pay for it , ' said new york mayor michael bloomberg . gov . christie said that there was obligations potentially for the taxpayers of new jersey that he did n't feel they should shoulder . ' that 's his decision to make , ' bloomberg added . the access to the region 's core project , also known as the trans hudson express arc project , would have created 6,000 jobs , with federal cost estimates ranging between $ 9.8 billion and $ 12.7 billion . lautenberg was among its proponents and led public criticism against the governor 's decision to put the project on hold and ultimately cancel it . the critical difference to arc is that gateway will add far less capacity for new jersey transit , though still a considerable amount , ' said martin robins , a former director of new jersey transit 's waterfront transportation office . the operators would be a lot happier having arc-lite than nothing . ' but the state also is facing a projected budget gap of $ 10.5 billion for the next fiscal year . the new jersey governor has made deficit reduction a cornerstone of his administration , pushing cuts to education , local governments and mass transit and tackling state pension plans and benefits packages for public-sector workers . christie is expected to deliver his annual budget presentation february 22 . cnn 's raelyn johnson contributed to this report . | new jersey governor rejected a similar project in october , citing budget concerns |
india <tsp> new delhi , india ( cnn ) -- around 1.2 million children are believed to be involved in prostitution in india , the country 's federal police said monday . ashwani kumar , who heads the central bureau of investigation ( cbi ) , told a seminar on human trafficking , that india occupied a unique position ' as what he called a source , transit nation and destination of this trade . india 's home secretary madhukar gupta remarked that at least 100 million people were involved in human trafficking in india . the number of trafficked persons is difficult to determine due to the secrecy and clandestine nature of the crime . however , studies and surveys sponsored by the ministry of women and child development estimate that there are about three million prostitutes in the country , of which an estimated 40 percent are children , ' a cbi statement said . prostitution in pilgrim towns , exploitation through sex tourism and pedophilia are some of the alarming trends ' that have emerged in recent years in india , it noted . authorities believe 90 percent of human trafficking in india is intra-country . ' | authorities believe 90 percent of human trafficking in india is intra-country ' |
india <tsp> new delhi , india ( cnn ) -- around 1.2 million children are believed to be involved in prostitution in india , the country 's federal police said monday . ashwani kumar , who heads the central bureau of investigation ( cbi ) , told a seminar on human trafficking , that india occupied a unique position ' as what he called a source , transit nation and destination of this trade . india 's home secretary madhukar gupta remarked that at least 100 million people were involved in human trafficking in india . the number of trafficked persons is difficult to determine due to the secrecy and clandestine nature of the crime . however , studies and surveys sponsored by the ministry of women and child development estimate that there are about three million prostitutes in the country , of which an estimated 40 percent are children , ' a cbi statement said . prostitution in pilgrim towns , exploitation through sex tourism and pedophilia are some of the alarming trends ' that have emerged in recent years in india , it noted . authorities believe 90 percent of human trafficking in india is intra-country . ' | around 1.2 million children are believed to be involved in prostitution in india |
irs <tsp> the acting head of the internal revenue service said thursday that evidence so far shows only conservative groups underwent extra scrutiny cited by an inspector general 's disclosure of the agency 's targeting of applications for tax exempt status . an initial report on the irs targeting scandal this week by daniel werfel , the irs principal deputy commissioner , led to the disclosure that irs workers flagged both liberal and conservative groups when assessing their eligibility for the tax break available to social welfare organizations . irs screeners used conservative-themed criteria such as tea party ' on be on the lookout ' or bolo lists to determine if groups underwent further review for political activity that would make them ineligible , according to werfel and the inspector general who first revealed the targeting . another category of the bolo lists also had liberal-themed criteria including progressives , ' but that category did n't set off the automatic extra scrutiny for political activity faced by conservative groups , according to a letter to the panel this week by treasury inspector general for tax administration j. russell george . under tough questioning thursday at a house ways and means committee hearing , werfel acknowledged that the different bolo categories meant liberal groups avoided the extra scrutiny cited by the inspector general that included processing delays and extensive questions perceived by conservatives as political intimidation . the revelation bolstered the argument of gop rep. dave camp of michigan , the panel 's chairman , that the targeting had a political motive . so far , the evidence only shows conservatives being systematically targeted by the irs , not just flagged through the bolo , but actually targeted , ' camp said , later conceding we 're in the early stages of this investigation . ' werfel repeatedly cautioned that his internal review was incomplete , and that additional information from continuing investigations by the fbi , the inspector general and congressional committees was needed to reach definitive conclusions . he noted that the 80 groups that have waited more than 120 days for a final decision on their applications for a tax break included a diverse range of political leanings . i did n't want to leave the committee with the impression that we 're not seeing diversity of political labels across the spectrum , ' werfel said of the irs targeting . what i 'm suggesting is more analysis -- significant more analysis -- is needed before we reach conclusions about what that means in terms of an irs failure or an irs issue . ' the hearing on the still-evolving scandal featured angry accusations and tense exchanges between legislators , with republicans inferring a government cover-up of high-level wrongdoing while democrats accused them of political posturing . all involved agreed that werfel needed more time to figure out exactly what happened , who was responsible and why . that did n't stop republicans from criticizing his efforts so far . camp said werfel 's report , filed just over a month after his appointment by president barack obama to clean up the mess at the irs , lacked accountability and reached unsubstantiated conclusions . if there is anything this report shows , it 's just how much more work must be done , ' camp said , noting that werfel had yet to interview principal figures or get other information necessary to determine the origins or scope of the targeting . another gop legislator , rep. kevin brady of texas , called werfel 's report a sham . ' camp also warned werfel that the targeting scandal and other irs controversies , such as wasteful spending in past years , would affect his panel 's consideration budget request for more money next year . until the irs proves that it can responsibly manage its current funds , the irs will not see one more dime in taxpayer funding , ' camp said . werfel noted that the fbi and inspector general were handling interview of irs officials involved in the targeting , adding that the investigations could involve criminal behavior . he repeated the assertion in his report that no evidence so far suggested intentional wrongdoing by agency personnel or influence from outside the irs in the targeting . his report released monday said five managers had been replaced and other steps taken in response to george 's audit last month that set off a political firestorm in washington . republican leaders contend the targeting uncovered by the inspector general 's audit indicated political villainy by the obama administration to try to stifle opponents , such as groups with tea party ' in their names that were flagged for additional irs scrutiny . democrats said thursday that such allegations were politically motivated instead of based on any evidence . rep. sander levin of michigan , the top democrat on the panel , asked werfel if there was any evidence of white house involvement in the targeting , and werfel answered no . irs targeting scandal reshaped by new details on wednesday , white house spokesman jay carney told reporters that there 's been a lot of flagrant , unfounded accusations made by members of congress in the republican party about this issue , accusations that were made without factual foundation . ' obama 's second-term blues investigations by the fbi , congressional committees , the treasury inspector general 's office and the irs continue . president barack obama appointed werfel to clean up the irs mess last month after the inspector general 's audit uncovered targeting of applications that contained conservative-themed words such as tea party . ' george 's audit said the targeting resulted in some conservative groups having their applications delayed or stonewalled with requests for answers to inappropriate questions regarding donors , political beliefs and other matters . the targeting of conservative groups ended in may 2012 , the audit said . in his first substantive report on the agency , werfel said monday that its tax-exempt unit used multiple lists of inappropriate criteria in assessing tax-exempt applications until earlier this month , more than a year later than previously revealed . werfel said he has suspended the use of bolo lists in considering tax-exempt applications for now . boehner on irs : who is going to jail ? werfel 's report monday said the five irs managers replaced included the previous acting commissioner he succeeded , as well as the head of the unit based in cincinnati that handles tax-exempt applications . in addition , werfel created an accountability review board to recommend within 60 days any additional personnel actions necessary to hold accountable those responsible ' for the targeting disclosed by the inspector general 's report . as part of his review , werfel said 80 groups awaiting irs action on their applications for tax-exempt status for more than 120 days could self-register with the agency as long as they certified under penalty of perjury that they would comply with applicable laws and regulations . at the heart of the matter is what kind of organization can qualify for tax-exempt status . regulations limit such status to groups primarily involved in social welfare activities , while political groups are considered ineligible . confusion over defining what constitutes political activity versus social welfare activity contributed to the targeting by the irs , werfel said . an irs statement monday said the safe-harbor ' option for self-certification would apply to groups that certify they devote 60 % or more of both their spending and time on activities that promote social welfare . ' at the same time , they must certify that political campaign intervention involves 40 % or less of both their spending and time , ' the statement said . applicants meeting those thresholds would get approval within two weeks of seeking self-certification , it said . werfel said the irs would continue checking on tax-exempt groups to ensure they were following the law . | irs acting leader werfel issued a report on the matter this week |
irs <tsp> the acting head of the internal revenue service said thursday that evidence so far shows only conservative groups underwent extra scrutiny cited by an inspector general 's disclosure of the agency 's targeting of applications for tax exempt status . an initial report on the irs targeting scandal this week by daniel werfel , the irs principal deputy commissioner , led to the disclosure that irs workers flagged both liberal and conservative groups when assessing their eligibility for the tax break available to social welfare organizations . irs screeners used conservative-themed criteria such as tea party ' on be on the lookout ' or bolo lists to determine if groups underwent further review for political activity that would make them ineligible , according to werfel and the inspector general who first revealed the targeting . another category of the bolo lists also had liberal-themed criteria including progressives , ' but that category did n't set off the automatic extra scrutiny for political activity faced by conservative groups , according to a letter to the panel this week by treasury inspector general for tax administration j. russell george . under tough questioning thursday at a house ways and means committee hearing , werfel acknowledged that the different bolo categories meant liberal groups avoided the extra scrutiny cited by the inspector general that included processing delays and extensive questions perceived by conservatives as political intimidation . the revelation bolstered the argument of gop rep. dave camp of michigan , the panel 's chairman , that the targeting had a political motive . so far , the evidence only shows conservatives being systematically targeted by the irs , not just flagged through the bolo , but actually targeted , ' camp said , later conceding we 're in the early stages of this investigation . ' werfel repeatedly cautioned that his internal review was incomplete , and that additional information from continuing investigations by the fbi , the inspector general and congressional committees was needed to reach definitive conclusions . he noted that the 80 groups that have waited more than 120 days for a final decision on their applications for a tax break included a diverse range of political leanings . i did n't want to leave the committee with the impression that we 're not seeing diversity of political labels across the spectrum , ' werfel said of the irs targeting . what i 'm suggesting is more analysis -- significant more analysis -- is needed before we reach conclusions about what that means in terms of an irs failure or an irs issue . ' the hearing on the still-evolving scandal featured angry accusations and tense exchanges between legislators , with republicans inferring a government cover-up of high-level wrongdoing while democrats accused them of political posturing . all involved agreed that werfel needed more time to figure out exactly what happened , who was responsible and why . that did n't stop republicans from criticizing his efforts so far . camp said werfel 's report , filed just over a month after his appointment by president barack obama to clean up the mess at the irs , lacked accountability and reached unsubstantiated conclusions . if there is anything this report shows , it 's just how much more work must be done , ' camp said , noting that werfel had yet to interview principal figures or get other information necessary to determine the origins or scope of the targeting . another gop legislator , rep. kevin brady of texas , called werfel 's report a sham . ' camp also warned werfel that the targeting scandal and other irs controversies , such as wasteful spending in past years , would affect his panel 's consideration budget request for more money next year . until the irs proves that it can responsibly manage its current funds , the irs will not see one more dime in taxpayer funding , ' camp said . werfel noted that the fbi and inspector general were handling interview of irs officials involved in the targeting , adding that the investigations could involve criminal behavior . he repeated the assertion in his report that no evidence so far suggested intentional wrongdoing by agency personnel or influence from outside the irs in the targeting . his report released monday said five managers had been replaced and other steps taken in response to george 's audit last month that set off a political firestorm in washington . republican leaders contend the targeting uncovered by the inspector general 's audit indicated political villainy by the obama administration to try to stifle opponents , such as groups with tea party ' in their names that were flagged for additional irs scrutiny . democrats said thursday that such allegations were politically motivated instead of based on any evidence . rep. sander levin of michigan , the top democrat on the panel , asked werfel if there was any evidence of white house involvement in the targeting , and werfel answered no . irs targeting scandal reshaped by new details on wednesday , white house spokesman jay carney told reporters that there 's been a lot of flagrant , unfounded accusations made by members of congress in the republican party about this issue , accusations that were made without factual foundation . ' obama 's second-term blues investigations by the fbi , congressional committees , the treasury inspector general 's office and the irs continue . president barack obama appointed werfel to clean up the irs mess last month after the inspector general 's audit uncovered targeting of applications that contained conservative-themed words such as tea party . ' george 's audit said the targeting resulted in some conservative groups having their applications delayed or stonewalled with requests for answers to inappropriate questions regarding donors , political beliefs and other matters . the targeting of conservative groups ended in may 2012 , the audit said . in his first substantive report on the agency , werfel said monday that its tax-exempt unit used multiple lists of inappropriate criteria in assessing tax-exempt applications until earlier this month , more than a year later than previously revealed . werfel said he has suspended the use of bolo lists in considering tax-exempt applications for now . boehner on irs : who is going to jail ? werfel 's report monday said the five irs managers replaced included the previous acting commissioner he succeeded , as well as the head of the unit based in cincinnati that handles tax-exempt applications . in addition , werfel created an accountability review board to recommend within 60 days any additional personnel actions necessary to hold accountable those responsible ' for the targeting disclosed by the inspector general 's report . as part of his review , werfel said 80 groups awaiting irs action on their applications for tax-exempt status for more than 120 days could self-register with the agency as long as they certified under penalty of perjury that they would comply with applicable laws and regulations . at the heart of the matter is what kind of organization can qualify for tax-exempt status . regulations limit such status to groups primarily involved in social welfare activities , while political groups are considered ineligible . confusion over defining what constitutes political activity versus social welfare activity contributed to the targeting by the irs , werfel said . an irs statement monday said the safe-harbor ' option for self-certification would apply to groups that certify they devote 60 % or more of both their spending and time on activities that promote social welfare . ' at the same time , they must certify that political campaign intervention involves 40 % or less of both their spending and time , ' the statement said . applicants meeting those thresholds would get approval within two weeks of seeking self-certification , it said . werfel said the irs would continue checking on tax-exempt groups to ensure they were following the law . | the irs targeting included conservative and liberal groups |
irs <tsp> the acting head of the internal revenue service said thursday that evidence so far shows only conservative groups underwent extra scrutiny cited by an inspector general 's disclosure of the agency 's targeting of applications for tax exempt status . an initial report on the irs targeting scandal this week by daniel werfel , the irs principal deputy commissioner , led to the disclosure that irs workers flagged both liberal and conservative groups when assessing their eligibility for the tax break available to social welfare organizations . irs screeners used conservative-themed criteria such as tea party ' on be on the lookout ' or bolo lists to determine if groups underwent further review for political activity that would make them ineligible , according to werfel and the inspector general who first revealed the targeting . another category of the bolo lists also had liberal-themed criteria including progressives , ' but that category did n't set off the automatic extra scrutiny for political activity faced by conservative groups , according to a letter to the panel this week by treasury inspector general for tax administration j. russell george . under tough questioning thursday at a house ways and means committee hearing , werfel acknowledged that the different bolo categories meant liberal groups avoided the extra scrutiny cited by the inspector general that included processing delays and extensive questions perceived by conservatives as political intimidation . the revelation bolstered the argument of gop rep. dave camp of michigan , the panel 's chairman , that the targeting had a political motive . so far , the evidence only shows conservatives being systematically targeted by the irs , not just flagged through the bolo , but actually targeted , ' camp said , later conceding we 're in the early stages of this investigation . ' werfel repeatedly cautioned that his internal review was incomplete , and that additional information from continuing investigations by the fbi , the inspector general and congressional committees was needed to reach definitive conclusions . he noted that the 80 groups that have waited more than 120 days for a final decision on their applications for a tax break included a diverse range of political leanings . i did n't want to leave the committee with the impression that we 're not seeing diversity of political labels across the spectrum , ' werfel said of the irs targeting . what i 'm suggesting is more analysis -- significant more analysis -- is needed before we reach conclusions about what that means in terms of an irs failure or an irs issue . ' the hearing on the still-evolving scandal featured angry accusations and tense exchanges between legislators , with republicans inferring a government cover-up of high-level wrongdoing while democrats accused them of political posturing . all involved agreed that werfel needed more time to figure out exactly what happened , who was responsible and why . that did n't stop republicans from criticizing his efforts so far . camp said werfel 's report , filed just over a month after his appointment by president barack obama to clean up the mess at the irs , lacked accountability and reached unsubstantiated conclusions . if there is anything this report shows , it 's just how much more work must be done , ' camp said , noting that werfel had yet to interview principal figures or get other information necessary to determine the origins or scope of the targeting . another gop legislator , rep. kevin brady of texas , called werfel 's report a sham . ' camp also warned werfel that the targeting scandal and other irs controversies , such as wasteful spending in past years , would affect his panel 's consideration budget request for more money next year . until the irs proves that it can responsibly manage its current funds , the irs will not see one more dime in taxpayer funding , ' camp said . werfel noted that the fbi and inspector general were handling interview of irs officials involved in the targeting , adding that the investigations could involve criminal behavior . he repeated the assertion in his report that no evidence so far suggested intentional wrongdoing by agency personnel or influence from outside the irs in the targeting . his report released monday said five managers had been replaced and other steps taken in response to george 's audit last month that set off a political firestorm in washington . republican leaders contend the targeting uncovered by the inspector general 's audit indicated political villainy by the obama administration to try to stifle opponents , such as groups with tea party ' in their names that were flagged for additional irs scrutiny . democrats said thursday that such allegations were politically motivated instead of based on any evidence . rep. sander levin of michigan , the top democrat on the panel , asked werfel if there was any evidence of white house involvement in the targeting , and werfel answered no . irs targeting scandal reshaped by new details on wednesday , white house spokesman jay carney told reporters that there 's been a lot of flagrant , unfounded accusations made by members of congress in the republican party about this issue , accusations that were made without factual foundation . ' obama 's second-term blues investigations by the fbi , congressional committees , the treasury inspector general 's office and the irs continue . president barack obama appointed werfel to clean up the irs mess last month after the inspector general 's audit uncovered targeting of applications that contained conservative-themed words such as tea party . ' george 's audit said the targeting resulted in some conservative groups having their applications delayed or stonewalled with requests for answers to inappropriate questions regarding donors , political beliefs and other matters . the targeting of conservative groups ended in may 2012 , the audit said . in his first substantive report on the agency , werfel said monday that its tax-exempt unit used multiple lists of inappropriate criteria in assessing tax-exempt applications until earlier this month , more than a year later than previously revealed . werfel said he has suspended the use of bolo lists in considering tax-exempt applications for now . boehner on irs : who is going to jail ? werfel 's report monday said the five irs managers replaced included the previous acting commissioner he succeeded , as well as the head of the unit based in cincinnati that handles tax-exempt applications . in addition , werfel created an accountability review board to recommend within 60 days any additional personnel actions necessary to hold accountable those responsible ' for the targeting disclosed by the inspector general 's report . as part of his review , werfel said 80 groups awaiting irs action on their applications for tax-exempt status for more than 120 days could self-register with the agency as long as they certified under penalty of perjury that they would comply with applicable laws and regulations . at the heart of the matter is what kind of organization can qualify for tax-exempt status . regulations limit such status to groups primarily involved in social welfare activities , while political groups are considered ineligible . confusion over defining what constitutes political activity versus social welfare activity contributed to the targeting by the irs , werfel said . an irs statement monday said the safe-harbor ' option for self-certification would apply to groups that certify they devote 60 % or more of both their spending and time on activities that promote social welfare . ' at the same time , they must certify that political campaign intervention involves 40 % or less of both their spending and time , ' the statement said . applicants meeting those thresholds would get approval within two weeks of seeking self-certification , it said . werfel said the irs would continue checking on tax-exempt groups to ensure they were following the law . | committee chairman camp says the irs response lacks sufficient accountability |
irs <tsp> the acting head of the internal revenue service said thursday that evidence so far shows only conservative groups underwent extra scrutiny cited by an inspector general 's disclosure of the agency 's targeting of applications for tax exempt status . an initial report on the irs targeting scandal this week by daniel werfel , the irs principal deputy commissioner , led to the disclosure that irs workers flagged both liberal and conservative groups when assessing their eligibility for the tax break available to social welfare organizations . irs screeners used conservative-themed criteria such as tea party ' on be on the lookout ' or bolo lists to determine if groups underwent further review for political activity that would make them ineligible , according to werfel and the inspector general who first revealed the targeting . another category of the bolo lists also had liberal-themed criteria including progressives , ' but that category did n't set off the automatic extra scrutiny for political activity faced by conservative groups , according to a letter to the panel this week by treasury inspector general for tax administration j. russell george . under tough questioning thursday at a house ways and means committee hearing , werfel acknowledged that the different bolo categories meant liberal groups avoided the extra scrutiny cited by the inspector general that included processing delays and extensive questions perceived by conservatives as political intimidation . the revelation bolstered the argument of gop rep. dave camp of michigan , the panel 's chairman , that the targeting had a political motive . so far , the evidence only shows conservatives being systematically targeted by the irs , not just flagged through the bolo , but actually targeted , ' camp said , later conceding we 're in the early stages of this investigation . ' werfel repeatedly cautioned that his internal review was incomplete , and that additional information from continuing investigations by the fbi , the inspector general and congressional committees was needed to reach definitive conclusions . he noted that the 80 groups that have waited more than 120 days for a final decision on their applications for a tax break included a diverse range of political leanings . i did n't want to leave the committee with the impression that we 're not seeing diversity of political labels across the spectrum , ' werfel said of the irs targeting . what i 'm suggesting is more analysis -- significant more analysis -- is needed before we reach conclusions about what that means in terms of an irs failure or an irs issue . ' the hearing on the still-evolving scandal featured angry accusations and tense exchanges between legislators , with republicans inferring a government cover-up of high-level wrongdoing while democrats accused them of political posturing . all involved agreed that werfel needed more time to figure out exactly what happened , who was responsible and why . that did n't stop republicans from criticizing his efforts so far . camp said werfel 's report , filed just over a month after his appointment by president barack obama to clean up the mess at the irs , lacked accountability and reached unsubstantiated conclusions . if there is anything this report shows , it 's just how much more work must be done , ' camp said , noting that werfel had yet to interview principal figures or get other information necessary to determine the origins or scope of the targeting . another gop legislator , rep. kevin brady of texas , called werfel 's report a sham . ' camp also warned werfel that the targeting scandal and other irs controversies , such as wasteful spending in past years , would affect his panel 's consideration budget request for more money next year . until the irs proves that it can responsibly manage its current funds , the irs will not see one more dime in taxpayer funding , ' camp said . werfel noted that the fbi and inspector general were handling interview of irs officials involved in the targeting , adding that the investigations could involve criminal behavior . he repeated the assertion in his report that no evidence so far suggested intentional wrongdoing by agency personnel or influence from outside the irs in the targeting . his report released monday said five managers had been replaced and other steps taken in response to george 's audit last month that set off a political firestorm in washington . republican leaders contend the targeting uncovered by the inspector general 's audit indicated political villainy by the obama administration to try to stifle opponents , such as groups with tea party ' in their names that were flagged for additional irs scrutiny . democrats said thursday that such allegations were politically motivated instead of based on any evidence . rep. sander levin of michigan , the top democrat on the panel , asked werfel if there was any evidence of white house involvement in the targeting , and werfel answered no . irs targeting scandal reshaped by new details on wednesday , white house spokesman jay carney told reporters that there 's been a lot of flagrant , unfounded accusations made by members of congress in the republican party about this issue , accusations that were made without factual foundation . ' obama 's second-term blues investigations by the fbi , congressional committees , the treasury inspector general 's office and the irs continue . president barack obama appointed werfel to clean up the irs mess last month after the inspector general 's audit uncovered targeting of applications that contained conservative-themed words such as tea party . ' george 's audit said the targeting resulted in some conservative groups having their applications delayed or stonewalled with requests for answers to inappropriate questions regarding donors , political beliefs and other matters . the targeting of conservative groups ended in may 2012 , the audit said . in his first substantive report on the agency , werfel said monday that its tax-exempt unit used multiple lists of inappropriate criteria in assessing tax-exempt applications until earlier this month , more than a year later than previously revealed . werfel said he has suspended the use of bolo lists in considering tax-exempt applications for now . boehner on irs : who is going to jail ? werfel 's report monday said the five irs managers replaced included the previous acting commissioner he succeeded , as well as the head of the unit based in cincinnati that handles tax-exempt applications . in addition , werfel created an accountability review board to recommend within 60 days any additional personnel actions necessary to hold accountable those responsible ' for the targeting disclosed by the inspector general 's report . as part of his review , werfel said 80 groups awaiting irs action on their applications for tax-exempt status for more than 120 days could self-register with the agency as long as they certified under penalty of perjury that they would comply with applicable laws and regulations . at the heart of the matter is what kind of organization can qualify for tax-exempt status . regulations limit such status to groups primarily involved in social welfare activities , while political groups are considered ineligible . confusion over defining what constitutes political activity versus social welfare activity contributed to the targeting by the irs , werfel said . an irs statement monday said the safe-harbor ' option for self-certification would apply to groups that certify they devote 60 % or more of both their spending and time on activities that promote social welfare . ' at the same time , they must certify that political campaign intervention involves 40 % or less of both their spending and time , ' the statement said . applicants meeting those thresholds would get approval within two weeks of seeking self-certification , it said . werfel said the irs would continue checking on tax-exempt groups to ensure they were following the law . | irs chief : no evidence that liberal groups scrutinized like conservative groups |
fc metalist kharkiv <tsp> ( cnn ) -- new liverpool manager kenny dalglish 's first taste of european football ended in a goalless draw with sparta prague in the europa league . the scot led the club to three titles and two fa cups in his first stint as manager between 1985-91 but never competed in europe due to a ban on english clubs . but his european debut wo n't live long in the memory in a game of few chances in the czech republic , though liverpool will take a clean sheet back to anfield for the return leg in a week 's time . elsewhere , belgian side anderlecht lost 3-0 at home to dutch neighbors ajax . toby alderweireld , christian eriksen and mounir el hamdaoui all netting . bayer leverkusen , who are currently second in the german bundesliga , took a commanding 4-0 lead over fc metalist kharkiv in ukraine . sidney sam grabbed two goals with gonzalo castro and erin derdiyok scoring the others . dutch champions twente enschede won 2-0 in russia against rubin kazan with luuk de jong and peter wisgerhof on target . paris saint-germain snatched a late equaliser through peguy luyindula to draw 2-2 with bate borisov in belarus . german side stuttgart took an early lead against benfica through martin harnik but the portuguese giants hit back to win thanks to goals from oscar cardozo and franco jara . ukranian 's dynamo kiev won 4-1 in turkey against besiktas where former chelsea striker andriy shevchenko was amongst the goals . lech poznan , from poland , will take a slender 1-0 advantage to portugal for the second leg against braga after artjoms rudnevs handed them victory . high-fliers in serie a napoli were held to a goalless draw in italy by spanish club villarreal . salvatore aronica was sent off for the hosts . two goals in two minutes from wilfred bouma and ola toivonen helped dutch club psv eindhoven to salvage a 2-2 draw with lille in france . scottish champions rangers were on course for victory against sporting lisbon thanks to steven whittaker 's header but matias fernandez scored a last minute equalizer for the portuguese side . swiss club fc basel raced into a two-goal lead against spartak moscow but a superb second half comeback saw the russian side win 3-2 thanks to goals from dmitri kombarov , artem dzjuba and zhano ananidze . tomas necid gave fellow russians cska moscow a 1-0 win in greece against paok salonika . portuguese club porto won 2-1 at sevilla in spain while young boys , from berne in switzerland , beat russian club zenit st petersburg 2-1 after an injury-time goal from emmanuel mayuka . | bayer leverkusen thrash fc metalist kharkiv 4-0 in ukraine |
white house <tsp> washington ( cnn ) a 54-year-old man carrying a suspicious package scaled a white house fence sunday night , but was quickly apprehended . jerome r. hunt , of hayward , california , climbed the fence on the south side of the white house complex about 10:25 p.m. , said brian leary with the united states secret service . according to a source with knowledge of the investigation , the man made it 10 to 15 feet in on the south lawn but was compliant ' once he saw the dogs ready to engage with thim . hunt is in custody and charges are pending , leary said . the package was being examined and later deemed to be harmless , a secret service source told cnn . last week , a u.s. official told cnn that temporary steel spikes may be added to the tips of the white house perimeter fence to help deter jumpers . if done , this will be a temporary measure to protect the grounds until a new permanent one is constructed . the official said that the proposal is not in place yet . the secret service has come under heavy criticism after two incidents compromised the security of the grounds . on march 4 , two senior secret service agents who were reportedly intoxicated allegedly drove their car into a white house barrier . last september , a man jumped the white house fence and made it to an unlocked door on the grounds . asked about the white house fence jumper , house oversight committee chairman jason chaffetz told cnn , prevention and swift apprehension is the goal . i appreciate those who dealt with the situation , but i want to learn more . ' cnn 's michelle kosinski , jim acosta and chris frates contributed to this report . | the person climbed the fence on the south side of the white house complex |
austrian <tsp> cannes , france ( cnn ) -- after eleven days , hundreds of screenings and thousands of snaps from the paparazzi , there could only be one palme d'or winner . austrian director michael haneke hugs the president of the cannes jury , french actress isabelle huppert . the white ribbon , ' by austrian director michael haneke , was awarded the prize for its depiction of the cruel punishments meted out at a rural german school before the first world war . the palme d'or is the best prize a filmmaker can win , ' said haneke at a press conference following his award . i am not proud , but i am very happy . in my opinion , it 's silly to be proud . ' it was a case of fifth time lucky for haneke , who has previously been nominated for the award for funny games ' ( 1997 ) , code unknown ' ( 2000 ) , the piano teacher ' ( 2001 ) and hidden ' ( 2005 ) . there are always rumors at the festival , and one must not take them seriously , ' the director said . when i presented hidden ' [ in 2005 ] , everyone was telling me i was going to win the palme . and i did n't get it . ' jury president isabelle huppert , the french actress who won the best actress prize at the 2001 festival for the piano teacher , ' said she was delighted to have the chance to honor her former director . i think i always loved him as a director , and that 's why i 've worked with him before , ' she said at the post-awards press conference . to me , the movie is very philosophical . and his style , and his direction are totally ethical in my mind . that 's what i wanted to reward . ' the american actress robin wright penn , who also sat on the festival jury , laughed off rumors that the decision was hotly disputed . there have been rumors circulating that we were fighting in the room , ' she told the press conference . the beauty about loving each other ... [ is that ] we could disagree , and we still love each other . i felt like we built a consensus among us , ' she said . it was like being on big brother , ' except you could go to the movies , ' added british screenwriter and fellow juror hanif kureishi . some of the films are very long , ' he joked . elsewhere , charlotte gainsbourg won the best actress prize for her shocking turn in lars von trier 's antichrist , ' featuring scenes of genital mutilation that left audiences stunned . christolph waltz won best actor for his role in quentin tarantino 's inglourious basterds , ' while brillante mendoza secured the best director gong for kinatay . ' the jury prize was shared by korean auteur park chan-wook 's vampire film thirst , ' and andrea arnold 's fish tank , ' while the grand prix went to the prophet , ' by director jacques audiard . | the white ribbon , ' by austrian director michael haneke , wins cannes |
robin wright penn <tsp> cannes , france ( cnn ) -- after eleven days , hundreds of screenings and thousands of snaps from the paparazzi , there could only be one palme d'or winner . austrian director michael haneke hugs the president of the cannes jury , french actress isabelle huppert . the white ribbon , ' by austrian director michael haneke , was awarded the prize for its depiction of the cruel punishments meted out at a rural german school before the first world war . the palme d'or is the best prize a filmmaker can win , ' said haneke at a press conference following his award . i am not proud , but i am very happy . in my opinion , it 's silly to be proud . ' it was a case of fifth time lucky for haneke , who has previously been nominated for the award for funny games ' ( 1997 ) , code unknown ' ( 2000 ) , the piano teacher ' ( 2001 ) and hidden ' ( 2005 ) . there are always rumors at the festival , and one must not take them seriously , ' the director said . when i presented hidden ' [ in 2005 ] , everyone was telling me i was going to win the palme . and i did n't get it . ' jury president isabelle huppert , the french actress who won the best actress prize at the 2001 festival for the piano teacher , ' said she was delighted to have the chance to honor her former director . i think i always loved him as a director , and that 's why i 've worked with him before , ' she said at the post-awards press conference . to me , the movie is very philosophical . and his style , and his direction are totally ethical in my mind . that 's what i wanted to reward . ' the american actress robin wright penn , who also sat on the festival jury , laughed off rumors that the decision was hotly disputed . there have been rumors circulating that we were fighting in the room , ' she told the press conference . the beauty about loving each other ... [ is that ] we could disagree , and we still love each other . i felt like we built a consensus among us , ' she said . it was like being on big brother , ' except you could go to the movies , ' added british screenwriter and fellow juror hanif kureishi . some of the films are very long , ' he joked . elsewhere , charlotte gainsbourg won the best actress prize for her shocking turn in lars von trier 's antichrist , ' featuring scenes of genital mutilation that left audiences stunned . christolph waltz won best actor for his role in quentin tarantino 's inglourious basterds , ' while brillante mendoza secured the best director gong for kinatay . ' the jury prize was shared by korean auteur park chan-wook 's vampire film thirst , ' and andrea arnold 's fish tank , ' while the grand prix went to the prophet , ' by director jacques audiard . | jury member , robin wright penn , dismisses claims they were split over winner |
al-assad <tsp> damascus , syria ( cnn ) -- at a funeral for a syrian man allegedly killed by government forces , a grief-stricken sister wails uncontrollably . mourners carried her brother 's casket monday before thousands of anti-regime protesters , whose passionate anger against a brutal government crackdown was palpable . the situation is very bad . we only want to be like you , like the western people . we want to be free people , ' one mourner told cnn as the dead man 's casket passed nearby . look at him , 32 years ( old ) . ... the government is responsible . ( president ) bashar al-assad is responsible . bashar al-assad is killing us only because we want to be like you . ' cnn followed observers from the arab league to this funeral and a demonstration a few miles outside of damascus for a rare opportunity to meet some of the protesters wanting to overthrow al-assad . photos : rare look inside syria one man partially covered his face before speaking on camera . i 'm afraid when i 'm talking to you right now . why ? because i 'm going to lift this scarf and go into my home , and i 'm not 100 % sure that i 'm going to be safe , ' he said . because if not today , if not tomorrow , they will arrest me . ' he said the defiance here is possible because of the presence of two orange-jacketed arab league monitors on a fact-finding mission in syria . the league has called on al-assad 's regime to stop violence against civilians , free political detainees , remove tanks and weapons from cities and allow outsiders , including the international news media , to travel freely around syria . q & a : syria 's divisions deepen al-assad has denied the notion his regime commanded forces to fire on protesters , saying there were no orders by any departments of the state to fire on people . ' but many of the protesters here pushed forward to show injuries they say were inflicted by government forces . they say they ca n't go to government-run hospitals because they fear being arrested . as the arab league monitors leave the anti-government protest , they are blocked on a road by a pro-government activists . a banner emblazoned with al-assad 's image stretches across the street , and demonstrators wave syrian flags and pictures of the president . and it 's not the only pro-government rally in town . elsewhere , festive crowds clapped and danced to amplified music -- sometimes dancing along with government troops . demonstrators here say they trust the president . and they believe the government line that the opposition is fabricated . this opposition is not legal or real , ' one woman said . i think large masses of it are fake . ' few here will talk about the danger of syria imploding into sectarian chaos . but one american woman and her syrian husband are exceptions . if al-assad is forced to go , it will be chaos , ' the husband said . it will be big , big chaos . he is the security . ' he is a peaceful president , ' his wife chimed in . he likes to see all religions get along . he 's a peaceful man . ' for now , al-assad remains in control -- for the most part . but it 's hard to imagine his supporters and opponents can be kept apart much longer . | opposition protester : al-assad is killing us ' because we want to be free ' |
al-assad <tsp> damascus , syria ( cnn ) -- at a funeral for a syrian man allegedly killed by government forces , a grief-stricken sister wails uncontrollably . mourners carried her brother 's casket monday before thousands of anti-regime protesters , whose passionate anger against a brutal government crackdown was palpable . the situation is very bad . we only want to be like you , like the western people . we want to be free people , ' one mourner told cnn as the dead man 's casket passed nearby . look at him , 32 years ( old ) . ... the government is responsible . ( president ) bashar al-assad is responsible . bashar al-assad is killing us only because we want to be like you . ' cnn followed observers from the arab league to this funeral and a demonstration a few miles outside of damascus for a rare opportunity to meet some of the protesters wanting to overthrow al-assad . photos : rare look inside syria one man partially covered his face before speaking on camera . i 'm afraid when i 'm talking to you right now . why ? because i 'm going to lift this scarf and go into my home , and i 'm not 100 % sure that i 'm going to be safe , ' he said . because if not today , if not tomorrow , they will arrest me . ' he said the defiance here is possible because of the presence of two orange-jacketed arab league monitors on a fact-finding mission in syria . the league has called on al-assad 's regime to stop violence against civilians , free political detainees , remove tanks and weapons from cities and allow outsiders , including the international news media , to travel freely around syria . q & a : syria 's divisions deepen al-assad has denied the notion his regime commanded forces to fire on protesters , saying there were no orders by any departments of the state to fire on people . ' but many of the protesters here pushed forward to show injuries they say were inflicted by government forces . they say they ca n't go to government-run hospitals because they fear being arrested . as the arab league monitors leave the anti-government protest , they are blocked on a road by a pro-government activists . a banner emblazoned with al-assad 's image stretches across the street , and demonstrators wave syrian flags and pictures of the president . and it 's not the only pro-government rally in town . elsewhere , festive crowds clapped and danced to amplified music -- sometimes dancing along with government troops . demonstrators here say they trust the president . and they believe the government line that the opposition is fabricated . this opposition is not legal or real , ' one woman said . i think large masses of it are fake . ' few here will talk about the danger of syria imploding into sectarian chaos . but one american woman and her syrian husband are exceptions . if al-assad is forced to go , it will be chaos , ' the husband said . it will be big , big chaos . he is the security . ' he is a peaceful president , ' his wife chimed in . he likes to see all religions get along . he 's a peaceful man . ' for now , al-assad remains in control -- for the most part . but it 's hard to imagine his supporters and opponents can be kept apart much longer . | al-assad supporter : he is a peaceful president ... he is a peaceful man ' |
al-assad <tsp> damascus , syria ( cnn ) -- at a funeral for a syrian man allegedly killed by government forces , a grief-stricken sister wails uncontrollably . mourners carried her brother 's casket monday before thousands of anti-regime protesters , whose passionate anger against a brutal government crackdown was palpable . the situation is very bad . we only want to be like you , like the western people . we want to be free people , ' one mourner told cnn as the dead man 's casket passed nearby . look at him , 32 years ( old ) . ... the government is responsible . ( president ) bashar al-assad is responsible . bashar al-assad is killing us only because we want to be like you . ' cnn followed observers from the arab league to this funeral and a demonstration a few miles outside of damascus for a rare opportunity to meet some of the protesters wanting to overthrow al-assad . photos : rare look inside syria one man partially covered his face before speaking on camera . i 'm afraid when i 'm talking to you right now . why ? because i 'm going to lift this scarf and go into my home , and i 'm not 100 % sure that i 'm going to be safe , ' he said . because if not today , if not tomorrow , they will arrest me . ' he said the defiance here is possible because of the presence of two orange-jacketed arab league monitors on a fact-finding mission in syria . the league has called on al-assad 's regime to stop violence against civilians , free political detainees , remove tanks and weapons from cities and allow outsiders , including the international news media , to travel freely around syria . q & a : syria 's divisions deepen al-assad has denied the notion his regime commanded forces to fire on protesters , saying there were no orders by any departments of the state to fire on people . ' but many of the protesters here pushed forward to show injuries they say were inflicted by government forces . they say they ca n't go to government-run hospitals because they fear being arrested . as the arab league monitors leave the anti-government protest , they are blocked on a road by a pro-government activists . a banner emblazoned with al-assad 's image stretches across the street , and demonstrators wave syrian flags and pictures of the president . and it 's not the only pro-government rally in town . elsewhere , festive crowds clapped and danced to amplified music -- sometimes dancing along with government troops . demonstrators here say they trust the president . and they believe the government line that the opposition is fabricated . this opposition is not legal or real , ' one woman said . i think large masses of it are fake . ' few here will talk about the danger of syria imploding into sectarian chaos . but one american woman and her syrian husband are exceptions . if al-assad is forced to go , it will be chaos , ' the husband said . it will be big , big chaos . he is the security . ' he is a peaceful president , ' his wife chimed in . he likes to see all religions get along . he 's a peaceful man . ' for now , al-assad remains in control -- for the most part . but it 's hard to imagine his supporters and opponents can be kept apart much longer . | if al-assad is forced to go , it will be chaos , ' one man says |
diwali <tsp> ( cnn ) -- fireworks boom , bulbs flash , and flames flicker as tens of millions of people across the globe celebrate the beginning of the festival of lights . diwali -- from the word deepavali , meaning row of lights ' -- is observed by hindu , sikh and jain communities , who celebrate for five days in autumn to mark the victory of light over darkness . this year , the festival begins on november 3 , with splashes of color , lighting displays and blaring parties set to greet diwali 's arrival . celebrated for centuries across much of the indian subcontinent , diwali is now exploding : spreading the promise of wealth , knowledge and happiness to new communities across the world . from india for the diwali newcomer , photographer roy del vecchio expertly captures the outsider 's inauguration into the festival -- snapping the delighted face of a man who had invited him to join the celebrations on his roof . 39-year-old del vecchio says he had traveled to rajasthan to see the festival , when the man holding the sparkler had invited to join him and his sons to light fireworks and share traditional sweets . more cnn celebrates : halloween -- some of you are pretty twisted fireworks are said to drive away evil spirits and , at this time of year , many hindus will also clean the house and light small oil-burning lanterns to attract lakshmi , the goddess of wealth into the home . but the celebration is anticipated with excitement by many across india -- as well as neighboring sri lanka and nepal -- regardless of religious beliefs . i do celebrate diwali , more for the spirit of the festival , rather than its religious implications , ' says ireporter samarjit mazumdar from bangalore , india . to the world mazumdar captured one of diwali 's traditional symbols : a swastika assembled from marigold flowers , which symbolizes peace , the 32-year-old explains . but this year 's celebrations are likely to be anything but peaceful , with an explosion of diwali parties lighting up cities across the world . recent years have seen diwali parties pop up in locations from ontario , canada to melbourne , australia , where traditional diwali celebrations mix with showcases for indian food , music , dance , and film . from singapore 's little india district to rural somerset , uk , ireporters have sent pictures of diwali lights shining out . meanwhile in guyana , a huge motorcade rolls through the capital georgetown -- as captured by guyana native amanda richards . the country 's 200,000-strong hindu population line the route and often wait for hours to see the parade pass by . richards says she 's already planning where she 'll go to wait for this year 's motorcade -- and join the millions of others across the world hoping to catch a glimpse of the lights . | diwali , known as the festival of lights , is celebrated by by hindu , sikh and jain communities |
diwali <tsp> ( cnn ) -- fireworks boom , bulbs flash , and flames flicker as tens of millions of people across the globe celebrate the beginning of the festival of lights . diwali -- from the word deepavali , meaning row of lights ' -- is observed by hindu , sikh and jain communities , who celebrate for five days in autumn to mark the victory of light over darkness . this year , the festival begins on november 3 , with splashes of color , lighting displays and blaring parties set to greet diwali 's arrival . celebrated for centuries across much of the indian subcontinent , diwali is now exploding : spreading the promise of wealth , knowledge and happiness to new communities across the world . from india for the diwali newcomer , photographer roy del vecchio expertly captures the outsider 's inauguration into the festival -- snapping the delighted face of a man who had invited him to join the celebrations on his roof . 39-year-old del vecchio says he had traveled to rajasthan to see the festival , when the man holding the sparkler had invited to join him and his sons to light fireworks and share traditional sweets . more cnn celebrates : halloween -- some of you are pretty twisted fireworks are said to drive away evil spirits and , at this time of year , many hindus will also clean the house and light small oil-burning lanterns to attract lakshmi , the goddess of wealth into the home . but the celebration is anticipated with excitement by many across india -- as well as neighboring sri lanka and nepal -- regardless of religious beliefs . i do celebrate diwali , more for the spirit of the festival , rather than its religious implications , ' says ireporter samarjit mazumdar from bangalore , india . to the world mazumdar captured one of diwali 's traditional symbols : a swastika assembled from marigold flowers , which symbolizes peace , the 32-year-old explains . but this year 's celebrations are likely to be anything but peaceful , with an explosion of diwali parties lighting up cities across the world . recent years have seen diwali parties pop up in locations from ontario , canada to melbourne , australia , where traditional diwali celebrations mix with showcases for indian food , music , dance , and film . from singapore 's little india district to rural somerset , uk , ireporters have sent pictures of diwali lights shining out . meanwhile in guyana , a huge motorcade rolls through the capital georgetown -- as captured by guyana native amanda richards . the country 's 200,000-strong hindu population line the route and often wait for hours to see the parade pass by . richards says she 's already planning where she 'll go to wait for this year 's motorcade -- and join the millions of others across the world hoping to catch a glimpse of the lights . | cnn ireporters captured dazzling diwali parties from guyana to canada |
cnn <tsp> ( cnn ) -- fireworks boom , bulbs flash , and flames flicker as tens of millions of people across the globe celebrate the beginning of the festival of lights . diwali -- from the word deepavali , meaning row of lights ' -- is observed by hindu , sikh and jain communities , who celebrate for five days in autumn to mark the victory of light over darkness . this year , the festival begins on november 3 , with splashes of color , lighting displays and blaring parties set to greet diwali 's arrival . celebrated for centuries across much of the indian subcontinent , diwali is now exploding : spreading the promise of wealth , knowledge and happiness to new communities across the world . from india for the diwali newcomer , photographer roy del vecchio expertly captures the outsider 's inauguration into the festival -- snapping the delighted face of a man who had invited him to join the celebrations on his roof . 39-year-old del vecchio says he had traveled to rajasthan to see the festival , when the man holding the sparkler had invited to join him and his sons to light fireworks and share traditional sweets . more cnn celebrates : halloween -- some of you are pretty twisted fireworks are said to drive away evil spirits and , at this time of year , many hindus will also clean the house and light small oil-burning lanterns to attract lakshmi , the goddess of wealth into the home . but the celebration is anticipated with excitement by many across india -- as well as neighboring sri lanka and nepal -- regardless of religious beliefs . i do celebrate diwali , more for the spirit of the festival , rather than its religious implications , ' says ireporter samarjit mazumdar from bangalore , india . to the world mazumdar captured one of diwali 's traditional symbols : a swastika assembled from marigold flowers , which symbolizes peace , the 32-year-old explains . but this year 's celebrations are likely to be anything but peaceful , with an explosion of diwali parties lighting up cities across the world . recent years have seen diwali parties pop up in locations from ontario , canada to melbourne , australia , where traditional diwali celebrations mix with showcases for indian food , music , dance , and film . from singapore 's little india district to rural somerset , uk , ireporters have sent pictures of diwali lights shining out . meanwhile in guyana , a huge motorcade rolls through the capital georgetown -- as captured by guyana native amanda richards . the country 's 200,000-strong hindu population line the route and often wait for hours to see the parade pass by . richards says she 's already planning where she 'll go to wait for this year 's motorcade -- and join the millions of others across the world hoping to catch a glimpse of the lights . | cnn ireporters captured dazzling diwali parties from guyana to canada |
rybolovlev <tsp> ( cnn ) -- russian oligarch dmitry rybolovlev is set to lose half his wealth after being ordered to pay his former wife $ 4.5 billion in a settlement dubbed the most expensive divorce in history . ' elena rybolovleva 's lawyer marc bonnant said the order from a geneva court was unprecedented , and this record judgment is a complete victory . ' however , rybolovlev 's spokesman sergey chernitsyn said the divorce was still a win ' for the oligarch . the two had been battling over the settlement for six years , after elena rybolovleva , the oligarch 's wife of 23 years , filed for divorce . rybolovlev 's total wealth is estimated at $ 8.8 billion , according to the 2014 forbes list of billionaires . he made most of his money from the $ 6.5 billion sale of his stake in russia 's largest potassium fertilizer company in 2010 . rybolovlev is also known as the owner of the monaco football club , which plays in the top french soccer league . rybolovlev made headlines when he bought the palm beach maison de l'amitie from donald trump for reported $ 95 million in 2008 . in 2012 , the rybolovlev 's then 21-year-old daughter ekaterina bought manhattan 's most expensive apartment -- the penthouse on central park west which cost $ 88 million . a trust set up in ekaterina 's name also reportedly own scorpios , the greek island where jackie kennedy married the former owner of the island , aristotle onassis , in 1968 . the oligarch 's lawyers will appeal against the decision , questioning the sum . there will definitely be a new appellate review and therefore this judgment is not final given the existence of two levels of appeal in switzerland , ' said tetiana bersheda , rybolovlev 's lawyer . read more : 11 intriguing things owned by wealthy russians | dmitry rybolovlev ordered to pay his former wife $ 4.5 billion in a divorce settlement |
rybolovlev <tsp> ( cnn ) -- russian oligarch dmitry rybolovlev is set to lose half his wealth after being ordered to pay his former wife $ 4.5 billion in a settlement dubbed the most expensive divorce in history . ' elena rybolovleva 's lawyer marc bonnant said the order from a geneva court was unprecedented , and this record judgment is a complete victory . ' however , rybolovlev 's spokesman sergey chernitsyn said the divorce was still a win ' for the oligarch . the two had been battling over the settlement for six years , after elena rybolovleva , the oligarch 's wife of 23 years , filed for divorce . rybolovlev 's total wealth is estimated at $ 8.8 billion , according to the 2014 forbes list of billionaires . he made most of his money from the $ 6.5 billion sale of his stake in russia 's largest potassium fertilizer company in 2010 . rybolovlev is also known as the owner of the monaco football club , which plays in the top french soccer league . rybolovlev made headlines when he bought the palm beach maison de l'amitie from donald trump for reported $ 95 million in 2008 . in 2012 , the rybolovlev 's then 21-year-old daughter ekaterina bought manhattan 's most expensive apartment -- the penthouse on central park west which cost $ 88 million . a trust set up in ekaterina 's name also reportedly own scorpios , the greek island where jackie kennedy married the former owner of the island , aristotle onassis , in 1968 . the oligarch 's lawyers will appeal against the decision , questioning the sum . there will definitely be a new appellate review and therefore this judgment is not final given the existence of two levels of appeal in switzerland , ' said tetiana bersheda , rybolovlev 's lawyer . read more : 11 intriguing things owned by wealthy russians | rybolovlev 's total wealth is estimated at $ 8.8 billion , according to forbes |
ukraine <tsp> the united states and the european union stand with the people of ukraine ' in their fight for the right to choose alliances with countries other than russia , u.s. secretary of state john kerry said saturday . his comments come after a week of political tumult in which ukraine 's prime minister and cabinet have resigned , a controversial anti-protest law has been repealed and the president has signed off on a contested amnesty bill for anti-government protesters . nowhere is the fight for a democratic , european future more important today than in ukraine , ' said kerry , speaking at the munich security conference in germany . while there are unsavory elements in any chaotic situation , the vast majority of ukrainians want to live freely in a safe , prosperous country . they are fighting for the right to associate with partners who will help them realize their aspirations -- and they have decided that means their futures do not have to lie with one country alone . the united states and eu stand with the people of ukraine in that fight . ' the protesters have been in kiev 's independence square , or maidan , since november , when president viktor yanukovych reversed a decision to sign a long-awaited trade deal with the european union and turned instead toward russia . the government 's attempts to crack down on protests appear only to have strengthened the opposition 's resolve . violent confrontations flared after the anti-protest law was signed two weeks ago , followed by an uneasy standoff on the streets as the battle in the political arena has heated up . kerry also had a word of advice for moscow , which has accused europe of meddling in ukraine 's affairs while denying itself exerting undue influence on kiev . russia and other countries should not view the european integration of their neighbors as a zero-sum game , ' kerry said . in fact , the lesson of the last half-century is that we can accomplish much more when the united states , russia and europe work together . but make no mistake : we will continue to speak out when our interests or values are undercut by any country in the region . ' kerry added that while u.s. democracy was a work in progress , ' he was not going to shy away from calling out a disturbing trend in too many parts of central and eastern europe and the balkans ' where people 's aspirations are once again being trampled beneath corrupt , oligarchic interests . ' after his address , kerry met with three ukrainian opposition leaders -- arseniy yatsenyuk of the fatherland party , vitali klitschko of the udar party and petro poroschenko of the euromaidan ' street protest movement -- the state department said .'time is on our side' european council president herman van rompuy also highlighted events in ukraine as he opened the second day of the conference saturday . today ukraine is on all our minds , ' he said. as people across the country are taking to the streets , ukraine 's political destiny is still in the balance . ' van rompuy said he and european commission president jose manuel barroso had had a frank exchange ' with putin this week at an eu-russia summit in brussels , belgium . we answered his concerns about the impact on russia of closer economic ties between ukraine and europe . we also pressed the point of the rights of independent countries , ' he said . whatever the geopolitics , we have offered ukraine a closer association with the european union , the countries to its west . not for free , but upon conditions -- which were close to fulfilled . and not against the great neighboring nation to its east , with which it shares a history and culture . the offer is still there . and we know time is on our side . the future of ukraine belongs with the european union . ' but russian foreign minister sergey lavrov presented a rather different take in his remarks to the conference . what does incitement of increasingly violent street protests have to do with promoting democracy , ' he asked . why do n't we hear condemnation of those who seize and hold government buildings , attack the police , torch the police , use racist and anti-semitic and nazi slogans ? he suggested european politicians were encouraging ukraine actions that they would punish as violations of the law in their own countries . lavrov also said the united states and the european union appeared to be trying to push their own ideas on ukraine . freedom of choice is being imposed , and russia is not going to engage in this , ' he said . torture claims meanwhile , ukraine 's opposition parties continue to call for constitutional reforms to shift power away from the president . they say the new amnesty bill -- which only comes into force if protesters vacate seized government buildings and unblock roads and squares -- is unacceptable . yanukovych , who has been out on sick leave since thursday , has resisted calls for him to stand down and defended the government 's handling of the political crisis . on friday , western leaders voiced growing concern over reports of the kidnap and torture of opposition activists in ukraine . one , the visibly battered dmytro bulatov , reappeared thursday , more than a week after he went missing . he told reporters he 'd been kidnapped and tortured by his captors -- who , he claimed , crucified me ' by piercing his hands -- before being dumped in a forest . both eu foreign policy chief catherine ashton and white house press secretary jay carney condemned his cruel treatment . we are deeply concerned by increasing reports of protesters disappearing and being beaten and tortured , as well as by attacks on journalists , ' carney said . it is especially concerning that some of these reports have suggested the involvement of security forces . ' ukraine 's interior ministry has said it is investigating what happened to bulatov . ukraine , a former soviet republic , is home to 45 million people . the clashes earlier this month were an escalation of weeks of largely peaceful public protests prompted by yanukovych 's decision in november to spurn a planned trade deal with the european union and turn toward russia . he and putin agreed on a $ 15 billion deal for russia to buy ukrainian debt and slash the price of natural gas . | kerry : nowhere is the fight for a democratic , european future more important than in ukraine |
bush <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- jeb bush says he has n't made up his mind yet on a 2016 presidential campaign , but that did n't stop him wednesday from taking a thinly veiled shot at the top contender for the democratic nomination . bush , the former governor of florida , did n't mention former secretary of state hillary clinton by name , but clinton was clearly the butt of his remarks in colorado : ' this last week i saw something that was breathtaking . a candidate , a former secretary of state , who was campaigning in massachusetts where she said that'do n't let them tell you that businesses creates jobs ,'' bush said , referring to a line clinton made last week . while campaigning in massachusetts friday , clinton told the crowd , do n't let anybody tell you that it 's corporations and businesses that create jobs , ' adding that trickle-down economic policies have failed rather spectacularly . ' clinton backpedaled on those remarks three days later explaining that our economy grows when businesses and entrepreneurs create good-paying jobs here in america where workers and families are empowered to build from the bottom up and the middle out ' instead of handing tax breaks to corporations that outsource jobs . ' republicans have since pounced on the remarks and the former florida governor also used clinton 's line to build on his own economic vision . well , the problem in america today is that not enough jobs are being created . they are created by businesses where people 's income rise where they can live a life of purpose and meaning independent of government . that should be the mission . and the only way that we do that is to create a climate of high sustained economic growth where everybody , everybody in this country has a chance at earned success , ' bush said . and while that might sound like a stump speech , bush insists he has n't made up his mind yet , though he is seriously considering a bid and has met with top donors . his son george p. bush even said it 's more than likely that he 's giving this a serious thought in moving forward ' last weekend . his father is expected to make a decision after the holiday season . the former governor is n't the only potential gop presidential candidate who knocked clinton this week over the jobs comments . sen. rand paul of kentucky slammed clinton earlier this week while campaigning for republican candidates in kansas . hillary clinton comes up and she says ,'businesses do n't create jobs .'anybody here think businesses do n't create jobs ? ' paul said , according to buzzfeed . i 'm here today to endorse pat roberts and sam brownback , because you know what ? they know that businesses do create jobs , and i hope you know that too . ' paul also used his time at the mic to tie clinton 's comments to a comment from president barack obama on the 2012 campaign trail that was used repeatedly by republicans to attack the president during his reelection bid . the president says ,'you did n't build that , it just sort of happened ,'' paul said . obama 's comment that if you 've got a business , you did n't build that ' during a campaign rally in 2012 came while obama was talking about the importance of infrastructure and public services . the remark caused the obama campaign quite a headache in 2012 , and it looks like clinton 's comments on jobs could have the same impact in 2016 , if she were to run . | while campaigning in colorado , bush hit clinton over her comments that businesses do n't create jobs |
bush <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- jeb bush says he has n't made up his mind yet on a 2016 presidential campaign , but that did n't stop him wednesday from taking a thinly veiled shot at the top contender for the democratic nomination . bush , the former governor of florida , did n't mention former secretary of state hillary clinton by name , but clinton was clearly the butt of his remarks in colorado : ' this last week i saw something that was breathtaking . a candidate , a former secretary of state , who was campaigning in massachusetts where she said that'do n't let them tell you that businesses creates jobs ,'' bush said , referring to a line clinton made last week . while campaigning in massachusetts friday , clinton told the crowd , do n't let anybody tell you that it 's corporations and businesses that create jobs , ' adding that trickle-down economic policies have failed rather spectacularly . ' clinton backpedaled on those remarks three days later explaining that our economy grows when businesses and entrepreneurs create good-paying jobs here in america where workers and families are empowered to build from the bottom up and the middle out ' instead of handing tax breaks to corporations that outsource jobs . ' republicans have since pounced on the remarks and the former florida governor also used clinton 's line to build on his own economic vision . well , the problem in america today is that not enough jobs are being created . they are created by businesses where people 's income rise where they can live a life of purpose and meaning independent of government . that should be the mission . and the only way that we do that is to create a climate of high sustained economic growth where everybody , everybody in this country has a chance at earned success , ' bush said . and while that might sound like a stump speech , bush insists he has n't made up his mind yet , though he is seriously considering a bid and has met with top donors . his son george p. bush even said it 's more than likely that he 's giving this a serious thought in moving forward ' last weekend . his father is expected to make a decision after the holiday season . the former governor is n't the only potential gop presidential candidate who knocked clinton this week over the jobs comments . sen. rand paul of kentucky slammed clinton earlier this week while campaigning for republican candidates in kansas . hillary clinton comes up and she says ,'businesses do n't create jobs .'anybody here think businesses do n't create jobs ? ' paul said , according to buzzfeed . i 'm here today to endorse pat roberts and sam brownback , because you know what ? they know that businesses do create jobs , and i hope you know that too . ' paul also used his time at the mic to tie clinton 's comments to a comment from president barack obama on the 2012 campaign trail that was used repeatedly by republicans to attack the president during his reelection bid . the president says ,'you did n't build that , it just sort of happened ,'' paul said . obama 's comment that if you 've got a business , you did n't build that ' during a campaign rally in 2012 came while obama was talking about the importance of infrastructure and public services . the remark caused the obama campaign quite a headache in 2012 , and it looks like clinton 's comments on jobs could have the same impact in 2016 , if she were to run . | but that has n't stopped bush and sen. rand paul from hitting clinton over the quote |
tehran <tsp> ( cnn ) -- june 12 presidential elections are held following a campaign that saw huge rallies held in support of both incumbent mahmoud ahmadinejad and main opposition leader mir hossein moussavi , suggesting the race would be closely fought . incumbent iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad casts his vote in tehran last week . june 13 moussavi calls for vote counting to stop , saying there are blatant violations . ' the government says ahmadinejad won the ballot with 62.63 percent of the vote , while moussavi received 33.75 percent of the vote . following the announcement , angry crowds in iran 's capital break into shops , tear down signs and start fires as they protest the re-election of ahmadinejad . june 14 ahmadinejad gives victory speech , declines to guarantee the safety of moussavi . supreme leader ayatollah ali khamenei gives his blessing to the outcome of the election . authorities close arabic network al-arabiya 's tehran bureau for a week without offering a reason . protests continue by moussavi supporters , triggering a counterreaction from supporters of ahmadinejad , tens of thousands of whom rallied in central tehran . men on motorcycles -- reportedly ahmadinejad backers -- chase demonstrators and beat them with clubs , metal batons and baseball bats . june 15 khamenei agrees to an investigation into the disputed presidential election and asks opposition leader moussavi to pursue his allegation of ballot fraud through legal means . moussavi supporters take to the streets in the largest protest since the 1979 revolution . moussavi makes his first public appearance since the vote . at least 8 people are reported dead -- one at the end of the protest , the others after allegedly attacking a military post . mohammad ali abtahi -- a former vice president who backed pro-reform presidential candidate , mehdi karrubi -- is arrested . media rights group reporters without borders urges nations not to recognize the results of the election , citing censorship and a crackdown on journalists . june 16 iran 's guardian council election authority , a body of senior clerics and judges , agrees to recount some votes . ahmadinejad leaves for russia to meet with president dmitry medvedev . he is welcomed as the newly re-elected president of iran . ' ahmadinejad returns to iran later the same day . moussavi rejects the recount , saying it will be misused add more credence to a fraudulent ballot . he calls for fresh elections . with rival rallies planned by backers of both moussavi and ahmadinejad in the center of tehran , moussavi urges his supporters to stay away , fearing further violence . iran 's ministry of culture issues a ban on foreign media reporting from the streets of tehran , meaning international news crews including cnn were not allowed to leave their hotels and offices . thousands of people take to the streets in support of both sides in the disputed election . iran 's all-powerful leader , ayatollah ali khamenei , appeals to the country 's people to stand behind the islamic republic . june 17 iran 's revolutionary guard , a powerful military force that enforces strict islamic codes , threatens legal actions against web sites it says are inciting violence . it also accuses u.s. and canadian companies , including american intelligence agencies , for financially and technically supporting the web sites . moussavi 's supporters take to streets of tehran in a fifth day of demonstrations , staging what is billed as a silent protest , ' with some marchers wearing tape over their mouths . rally passes without violence . rights group amnesty international says other protests are staged in other cities across iran . iran 's national football team wears green arm and wrist bands during a world cup qualifying match in south korea , a symbol taken by many to indicate solidarity with moussavi 's supporters . june 18 thousands of supporters of mir hossein moussavi protest for a sixth consecutive day , many trading their green clothes for black garments in honor of at least eight protesters killed monday . meanwhile , in a televised speech , president mahmoud ahmadinejad claims remarks he made on sunday were taken out of context . after claiming victory in the elections , ahmadinejad compared the putative losers to fans of a losing soccer team . i was addressing those who started riots and set up fires and attacked people , ' he told the state-run news agency irinn . press tv reports that iran 's intelligence ministry said it had arrested a number of main agents ' behind vandalism during the daily demonstrations . june 19 in his first public appearance since the elections , supreme leader ayatollah ali khamenei endorses ahmadinejad 's win , insisting the margin of victory -- some 11 million votes -- was too large to have been manipulated . khamenei expresses his support for ahmadinejad and calls for an end to the protests , which he accused foreign powers including britain , israel and the united states of helping foment . he urged critics of the electoral process to seek redress through legal channels and warned that perpetrators of violent unrest would be punished . | supporters of moussavi dispute results and take to the streets of tehran |
apple <tsp> ( cnn ) -- two weeks ago , google published its much-anticipated gmail app in the apple app store . it did n't work . so the company had to yank the app . and now it 's back again . on wednesday the mountain view , california , company said it had fixed the bug and notifications are now working , and the app is back in the app store . ' google offered no new apology for the screw-up , and said the app would continue to improve : ' we 're just getting started with the gmail app for ios and will be iterating rapidly to bring you more features , including all the ones listed above plus many more , ' matthew izatt , a product manager , wrote on google 's gmail blog . based on your comments we have already improved our handling of image html messages - they are now sized to fit to the screen and you can pinch to zoom in. the company added : ' in the short time the app was public we received a lot of helpful feedback and feature requests . ' on november 2 , the company offered an apology to users , who complained the app did n't work . the ios app we launched today contained a bug with notifications , ' the company wrote on twitter . we have pulled the app to fix the problem . sorry we messed up . ' the whole ordeal led at least one tech writer to lose his faith in the company 's innovative potential . they release something , and i no longer have any faith that it 's going to be any good , ' mg siegler wrote on his personal tumblr blog . it 's hard to get excited about a company like that . it 's the same reason why it 's hard to get excited when microsoft and yahoo release new things . the track record just is n't there any more . the faith is gone . ' at least some initial feedback about the re-released app was positive . i really like it , the ui is great - do n't know what all these people are complaining about , ' one person wrote on the app 's page in itunes preview . overall , the app had a three-of-five-star rating on that page . | google re-releases its gmail app for apple devices |
syrian <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the international committee of the red cross has been granted access to a detention facility in syria for the first time since unrest broke out in the country , the committee 's president said monday after meeting with syrian president bashar al-assad . icrc president jakob kellenberger called the breakthrough an important step forward for our humanitarian activities in syria . ' kellenberger 's meeting with al-assad occurred amid mounting reports of bloodshed by syrian security forces . on monday , security forces killed six people during an ongoing crackdown in the province of homs , according to the syrian observatory for human rights , an opposition group . the group also reported a similar offensive in idlib province , where security forces entered with seven armored vehicles , nine cars and four buses . seventy people were arrested in the operation , and dozens of homes were raided , the opposition group said . syria has been engulfed in public protest for months , and the regime has been accused internationally of a crackdown on peaceful demonstrators . the government has maintained it is targeting armed terrorists . but opposition activists say it is a systematic , sustained slaughter . ensuring that the sick and the wounded have access to medical care will be among the particularly urgent humanitarian challenges to be addressed with the syrian authorities , ' the red cross said in a statement . the committee will initially be allowed to see only people detained by the ministry of interior , kellenberger said , adding , we are hopeful that we will soon be able to visit all detainees . ' also monday , the arab league announced that its secretary general , nabil al-araby , will travel to damascus on wednesday . the arab league last week publicly called for restraint and an end to the violence in syria . kellenberger 's two-day visit kicked off sunday with meetings with prime minister adel safar and foreign minister walid muallem . the syrian government said it briefed kellenberger on the regime 's efforts to restore stability and security to the country . ' reports have surfaced of people not being able to access medical care during security operations . the foreign minister stressed that the public hospitals in syria are constantly ready and provide the required medical services for all the citizens , ' the state-run syrian arab news agency reported monday . the news agency added that muallem appreciated the humanitarian activities of the syrian arab red crescent organization which has played an effective role in providing the humanitarian needs of the citizens during the current crisis . ' also monday , kellenberger discussed with al-assad the rules governing the use of force by security forces ... and the obligation to respect the physical and psychological well-being and human dignity of detainees , ' according to the icrc . on sunday , the syrian observatory for human rights said four people were killed in idlib province and three others were killed in the village of tahtaiya by security forces pursuing wanted activists . the opposition group also said a resident from suraqib who was detained for 20 days died in detention after being tortured . it also claimed that at least 15 people were wounded in the city of homs due to heavy gunfire by security forces . another opposition activist group , the local coordination committees of syria , said eight were killed in idlib , four in hama province , and one each in the provinces of homs and damascus . meanwhile , the syrian news agency reported that six troops and three civilians were killed near the city of muhardeh in hama province . the agency said a terrorist group ' ambushed a bus carrying troops and civilians , killing nine and injuring 17 . a security patrol pursued the attackers and killed three of them , wounding a fourth and seizing explosives , guns and medical supplies from their stolen pickup , the news agency said . cnn can not independently confirm either the opposition or government claims . syria has made it difficult for foreign journalists to work in the country since the unrest started , restricting their entry . officials do not usually comment on opposition allegations concerning the killing or wounding of protesters . the united nations has reported more than 2,200 people killed in syria since february , including more than 350 people since security forces stepped up operations against demonstrators during the muslim holy month of ramadan . when kellenberger visited syrian officials in june , he reached an understanding that would give the icrc and the syrian arab red crescent enhanced access to areas of unrest , and negotiations would take place concerning icrc visits to detainees . ' he aims to review progress made in both these areas , ' the icrc said , including an opportunity to discuss the impending start of icrc visits to persons detained by the ministry of the interior . ' the agency visits detainees in order to assess the conditions in which they are being held and the treatment they receive , ' it said . this week 's visit comes on the heels of an amnesty international report detailing the deaths of at least 88 people in detention and describing widespread abuse of prisoners . cnn 's yousuf basil , mohamed fadel fahmy and ivan watson contributed to this report . | red cross president concludes meeting with syrian president bashar al-assad |
portuguese <tsp> ( cnn ) since 2008 , fifa 's annual jamboree honoring the world 's best player has been dominated by just two names . ronaldo , messi , messi , messi , messi , ronaldo , ronaldo . monday saw portuguese and real madrid superstar cristano ronaldo crowned as winner of the fifa ballon d'or for a second year in a row . it came as scant surprise , given his club 's phenomenal form in 2014 that saw the return of champions league trophy -- and with it the coveted decima , ' or tenth european triumph -- to the bernabeu . it has been an incredible year , ' he said at the awards ceremony . i would like to continue the work that i have done so far . i want to try to improve , to become better as each day goes by . i never thought that i would bring this trophy back home on three occasions . i want to become one of the greatest players of all time . ' top of their game this seven-year duopoly reflects the importance of these two supreme athletes on the game , and allows us to see how lucky we are to be able to witness the long summers of two of the finest players to ever grace the sport . and part of the fascination lies in how different the two men are . debating the relative merits of ronaldo and his great rival lionel messi , talismans of real and barcelona , respectively , has been something of a parlor game in recent years . it 's easy to compare and contrast , at least superficially . on the one hand , the improbable , mercurial talent of the shaggy haired , oddly stooped figure of messi , confusing defenders as much as inspiring his teammates to a higher level . on the other : ronaldo . a glistening , taut mass of muscle , neck like a tree trunk , powering forward relentlessly . he looks like he was created in a lab or a high tech factory ; a terminator , the ultimate footballer . media matters the two could n't be much more different , in style and , if you are to believe the majority of the media , likability . ronaldo has suffered the slings and arrows of a largely hostile press for much of his career , starting as a foal-limbed teen in manchester , where he was often derided as a show pony , ' for elaborate and unnecessary tricks , and -- a sin in the english game -- diving to win free kicks and penalties . the negativity followed him to madrid and a then-record transfer fee . it is largely real 's cheerleading press , as and marca , that give him a free pass ; the rest of the global sporting media grudgingly accept his gifts , but are quick to level criticism when they feel it due . he 's often seen as a ball-hog , a selfish player who would rather shoot than pass to a teammate . that he has taken at least 10 shots at goal in nine matches does n't exactly banish the perception . that his fellow galactico ' gareth bale would have the temerity to take a shot ( and miss ) in a recent liga game rather than pass to cr7 , as the virtuoso has styled himself , earned him a withering look from the portuguese master , and the opprobrium of fans . off the field , his reticence to engage the media -- a symptom , it is said , of his shyness -- has been interpreted as haughty and arrogant . messi , on the other hand , who also eschews media coverage has typically been viewed as humble and self-effacing -- although recent tax and locker room scandals threaten to change that . phenomenal 2014 but the stats do n't lie , and with the phenomenal return of 61 goals from 60 appearances ( 42 in 30 la liga games alone ) during 2014 , it 's hard not to give credit to this year 's winner . he reached the 400-goal milestone for club and country ( in 653 appearances ) in january , he is a footballing genius , and had he stood alone -- his yin unopposed by messi 's yang -- he would no doubt be already talked of as one of the all-time greats . as it stands , he 's talking about that honor in aspirational terms , as a goal ; he 's spent most of his career battling comparisons . he 's also developed in leaps and bounds since his 2008 world player of the year trophy , refined his unquestionable talent since he first grinned on that fifa stage . he 's far more mature ; gone are the unnecessary stepovers and ( almost ) the petulance . to complement this , he long ago inherited an undimmable desire to win from his old mentor , alex ferguson , and he burns with passion and a need to score . that 's only become more evident as he grows into the complete player he has developed into over the past couple of years . and along with his natural ability , he 's long been an indefatigable , consummate professional who gives everything he has until the final whistle , and that 's what has fueled his work- and goal-rate in 2014 . he still takes a lot of shots , sure , but when ronaldo does n't score , ' on the rare occasions that he walks away from a match without netting a goal is the headline , maybe he 's right to do so . certainly his real madrid coach , carlo ancelotti , does n't begrudge him the efforts . world cup woes ? germany 's irrepressible keeper manuel neuer -- who was a distant outlier for the ballon d'or this year -- may feel aggrieved that his superlative world cup went unnoticed in voting . indeed , fabio cannavaro won the award 's predecessor , the fifa world player of the year in 2006 , off the back of his considerable influence captaining italy to 2006 world cup glory . but while he had a largely anonymous world cup , it would be difficult to deny that , year round , it has been cristiano 's year . and , like the man or not , no one should begrudge him his time at the pinnacle . | portuguese midfielder has developed into a more refined , rounded player in recent years |
european <tsp> london ( cnn ) -- we hear of tremors that shake , rattle and roll , but really cause no damage . then there are the big quakes that hit offshore and cause a scare , but nothing more . so , will the earthquake ' of the fringe parties coming in first in france , the united kingdom , greece and others be a tremor , or will there be damage ? that now depends on whether these parties can translate their momentum into seats in their national parties . in many countries the fringe parties already have seats . in greece , syriza should not even be called a fringe party , though they do occupy a space in the european parliament on the far left . i 'm thinking more about ukip . call them populist , call them fringe -- the uk 's other parties must respond . for the first time in more than a century , a third party in the uk has come in front in a national election . ukip has already had the desired effect of changing the national debate in britain . both labour and the ruling conservatives have for the past few years had to defend their policies on europe and immigration . the conservatives have had to move closer to ukip 's anti-eu and strong anti-immigration stance . all this before a single ballot was cast . now , ukip will the largest number of meps from britain . but unlike many other fringe parties in europe , ukip does not have one single seat in westminster , the national parliament . westminster is controlled by the three main parties , with a smattering of seats going to regional parties from the far reaches of the uk , and just one to the green party . ukip would have to create a massive earthquake to pick up even one seat during next year 's general election . but if you believe all the buzz from the elections , ukip is about to form the next government . this reminds me of five years ago when the rise of the right ' in europe was the screaming headline after the last eu parliament election . then most people forgot all about the eu parliament , only for it to rise up the agenda when parliamentary expenses are criticized . the difference this time is perhaps , that the parties have gained more seats . they have the momentum . france 's national front has gone from 6 % to 25 % of the vote . ukip has gone from 16 % to 27 % . geert wilders'pvv , in the netherlands , appear to have lost votes , but not seats . they are predicted to retain their four seats . in hungary , the jobbik party remained steady with three seats , but has become the second biggest hungarian party in the parliament . it should also be noted that the far , far right british party , the bnp , lost both of their meps and will have none in the new parliament . so , what about the left ? in greece , syriza has gone from one seat to six . it has already polled well in national elections . its leader alexis tsipras had put himself up at the next president of the european commission , and , it must be said , has made himself a credible candidate to be a future prime minister of greece . now , it will be up to the centrist parties , in the european parliament and in national parliaments to cobble together coalitions if they want to thwart the rise of fringe parties . but they can not ignore the reasons these other parties continue to gain in popularity ; austerity , unemployment , slow growth , immigration . you may or may not support these party 's views , but they are tapping into a growing resentment in europe . the new parliament will have more powers than its predecessors , but it remains to be seen if it also have a bigger voice . opinion : france shaken by le pen'earthquake' interactive : protest parties shake up european elections read more : greece turns left | cnn 's jim boulden looks at the rise of fringe parties in the crucial european election |
cyprus <tsp> ( cnn ) -- german finance minister wolfgang schaeuble says the eurozone 's problems are not solved , but we are in a much better shape than we used to be some years ago . ' asked whether he foresaw any further bailouts coming , he replied : no , no i do n't see . ' in a rare interview , conducted in english , he said : if chancellor merkel ( is ) reelected i am confident that we will continue to work for a stronger europe -- that 's our general position . we do n't want a german europe but we want a strong europe and that means every member state including germany has to increase its competitiveness , ' schaeuble said . a stronger europe means that everyone has to do its duty and not to ask for more money by others -- that 's the wrong way to get a strong europe , that 's the wrong incentive . ' his comments come ahead of the september 22 election , as merkel faces a german electorate weary of europe 's largest economy helping to bail out troubled eurozone nations , whose debt woes have threatened the stability of the currency . greece , along with three other eurozone countries -- portugal , ireland and cyprus -- remain dependent on rescue loans from the eu and international monetary fund ( imf ) . the 17-nation eurozone has emerged from its longest ever recession , growing 0.3 % in the second quarter after 18 months of contraction . unemployment rates remain high , but worries that the debt crisis could spread to larger economies such as spain and italy -- which both saw borrowing costs climb dangerously high last year -- have abated . you can see if you look at the rates for sovereign debts they are stable . markets have confidence in the stability of the eurozone as a whole . and economies are recovering in the whole of the eurozone and the average deficit has been halved in all member states of the eurozone in the last three years . ' schaeuble acknowledged that greece will need further assistance , but said there will be no further hair cuts ' -- such as 100 billion euros in losses greek debt holders were forced to incur last year -- for greece or any other eurozone nation . schaeuble : enthusiastic and on campaign trail cnn 's nina dos santos and irene chapple contributed this this report | greece , portugal , ireland and cyprus remain dependent on eu/imf bailout funds |
congress <tsp> ( cnn ) -- senate majority leader harry reid reversed plans wednesday to hold a test vote on an automakers'bailout bill on thursday . reid had planned to move on legislation that would have taken $ 25 billion from the $ 700 billion already approved for wall street and diverted it to the big three automakers . filmmaker michael moore says the collapse of general motors could mean the loss of millions of jobs . cnn 's larry king talked wednesday with michael moore , a filmmaker with deep ties to the auto industry . moore 's father worked for general motors for 35 years . in 1989 , moore became an international figure for his film , roger and me , ' which centered on the declining auto industry in his hometown of flint , michigan and the ripple effect on the town 's residents . the following is an edited version of the interview . larry king : michael , was ( the movie ) prophetic ? michael moore : when i made that film , there were still 50,000 people working at general motors in flint . i mean they had eliminated 30,000 jobs , but there were still some jobs there . today , i think there 's less than 12,000 working in the area , so it has devastated flint . flint was one of the first towns to go . when i made that movie almost 20 years ago , i hoped that the film would be a warning to other cities that this corporation was intent upon removing jobs from this country and taking them to mexico and brazil and other places . when i made that movie that year , general motors made a profit of over $ 4 billion , and they were still laying off people simply to make a bit more money , the people who helped to build the company , the workers in their hometown of flint , michigan , they just forgot about them and took the money and ran . king : since the principle was ,'we 'll have the cars built elsewhere and many of the cars are built elsewhere now ,'what went wrong if they were paying less out of the country to build them ? moore : well , what really went wrong is that general motors has had this philosophy from the beginning that what 's good for general motors is good for the country . so , their attitude was we 'll build it and you buy it . we 'll tell you what to buy . you just buy it . eventually , the consumer got smart and said ,'you know what , i 'd like a car that gets a little better gas mileage . i 'd like a car that 's safer on the road ,'so they started to buy other cars . general motors still would n't change . they still kept building the wrong cars , and more and more people stopped buying them . watch how moore feels about auto bailout » at a certain point , you know , general motors lost such a large part of the market share that there probably was a point of no return . now , here we are on the verge of this collapse . if general motors collapses , then there goes hundreds of thousands of jobs , if not millions of jobs of the ripple effect of this . king : and the same is true of ford and chrysler ? moore : absolutely . i 'll tell you , it was hilarious just watching these ceos there ( tuesday ) and ( wednesday ) testifying in congress , saying that , you know , that the problem was n't theirs , you know , the cars they were building . it was the financial situation that we 're in now . watch automakers get grilled on capitol hill » the problem is the cars they 've been building . they 've never listened to the consumers . they 've just gone about it their own wrong way . i 'll tell you , you know , i 'm of mixed mind about this bailout , larry , because i do n't think these companies , with these management people , should be given a dime , because that 's just going to be money going up in smoke or off to other countries . gm is currently building a $ 300 million factory in russia right now to build suvs , right outside of st. petersburg . that 's where your money 's going to go , no matter what they say . king : why ( do you have ) mixed feelings ? moore : well , because we ca n't let all these people lose their jobs because of the bad decisions , the stupid decisions made by the management of these auto companies . i think what has to happen here is that congress needs to pass some legislation , and our president-elect needs to do what roosevelt did . when roosevelt came in and when world war ii faced the country , roosevelt said to general motors and ford , you 're not going to build cars anymore . you 're going to build airplanes and tanks and guns and the things that we need for this war because we have a national crisis . general motors had to do what roosevelt told them they had to do . king : what do you want them to do now ? moore : president-elect obama has to say to them , yes , we 're going to use this money to save these jobs , but we 're not going to build these gas-guzzling , unsafe vehicles any longer . we 're going to put the companies into some sort of receivership and we , the government , are going to hold the reigns on these companies . they 're to build mass transit . they 're to build hybrid cars . they 're to build cars that use little or no gasoline . ireport.com : new emissions standards , other improvements needed we 're facing a national crisis , not just an economic crisis , but a crisis of the polar ice caps are melting . there 's only so much oil left under the earth . we 're going to run out of that , if not in our children 's time , our grandchildren 's time . there 's got to be a plan set out to find other ways to transport ourselves in other ways than using fossil fuels . | gm , ford and chrysler ceos plead to congress seeking auto bailout |
chrysler <tsp> ( cnn ) -- senate majority leader harry reid reversed plans wednesday to hold a test vote on an automakers'bailout bill on thursday . reid had planned to move on legislation that would have taken $ 25 billion from the $ 700 billion already approved for wall street and diverted it to the big three automakers . filmmaker michael moore says the collapse of general motors could mean the loss of millions of jobs . cnn 's larry king talked wednesday with michael moore , a filmmaker with deep ties to the auto industry . moore 's father worked for general motors for 35 years . in 1989 , moore became an international figure for his film , roger and me , ' which centered on the declining auto industry in his hometown of flint , michigan and the ripple effect on the town 's residents . the following is an edited version of the interview . larry king : michael , was ( the movie ) prophetic ? michael moore : when i made that film , there were still 50,000 people working at general motors in flint . i mean they had eliminated 30,000 jobs , but there were still some jobs there . today , i think there 's less than 12,000 working in the area , so it has devastated flint . flint was one of the first towns to go . when i made that movie almost 20 years ago , i hoped that the film would be a warning to other cities that this corporation was intent upon removing jobs from this country and taking them to mexico and brazil and other places . when i made that movie that year , general motors made a profit of over $ 4 billion , and they were still laying off people simply to make a bit more money , the people who helped to build the company , the workers in their hometown of flint , michigan , they just forgot about them and took the money and ran . king : since the principle was ,'we 'll have the cars built elsewhere and many of the cars are built elsewhere now ,'what went wrong if they were paying less out of the country to build them ? moore : well , what really went wrong is that general motors has had this philosophy from the beginning that what 's good for general motors is good for the country . so , their attitude was we 'll build it and you buy it . we 'll tell you what to buy . you just buy it . eventually , the consumer got smart and said ,'you know what , i 'd like a car that gets a little better gas mileage . i 'd like a car that 's safer on the road ,'so they started to buy other cars . general motors still would n't change . they still kept building the wrong cars , and more and more people stopped buying them . watch how moore feels about auto bailout » at a certain point , you know , general motors lost such a large part of the market share that there probably was a point of no return . now , here we are on the verge of this collapse . if general motors collapses , then there goes hundreds of thousands of jobs , if not millions of jobs of the ripple effect of this . king : and the same is true of ford and chrysler ? moore : absolutely . i 'll tell you , it was hilarious just watching these ceos there ( tuesday ) and ( wednesday ) testifying in congress , saying that , you know , that the problem was n't theirs , you know , the cars they were building . it was the financial situation that we 're in now . watch automakers get grilled on capitol hill » the problem is the cars they 've been building . they 've never listened to the consumers . they 've just gone about it their own wrong way . i 'll tell you , you know , i 'm of mixed mind about this bailout , larry , because i do n't think these companies , with these management people , should be given a dime , because that 's just going to be money going up in smoke or off to other countries . gm is currently building a $ 300 million factory in russia right now to build suvs , right outside of st. petersburg . that 's where your money 's going to go , no matter what they say . king : why ( do you have ) mixed feelings ? moore : well , because we ca n't let all these people lose their jobs because of the bad decisions , the stupid decisions made by the management of these auto companies . i think what has to happen here is that congress needs to pass some legislation , and our president-elect needs to do what roosevelt did . when roosevelt came in and when world war ii faced the country , roosevelt said to general motors and ford , you 're not going to build cars anymore . you 're going to build airplanes and tanks and guns and the things that we need for this war because we have a national crisis . general motors had to do what roosevelt told them they had to do . king : what do you want them to do now ? moore : president-elect obama has to say to them , yes , we 're going to use this money to save these jobs , but we 're not going to build these gas-guzzling , unsafe vehicles any longer . we 're going to put the companies into some sort of receivership and we , the government , are going to hold the reigns on these companies . they 're to build mass transit . they 're to build hybrid cars . they 're to build cars that use little or no gasoline . ireport.com : new emissions standards , other improvements needed we 're facing a national crisis , not just an economic crisis , but a crisis of the polar ice caps are melting . there 's only so much oil left under the earth . we 're going to run out of that , if not in our children 's time , our grandchildren 's time . there 's got to be a plan set out to find other ways to transport ourselves in other ways than using fossil fuels . | gm , ford and chrysler ceos plead to congress seeking auto bailout |
tanaka <tsp> tokyo ( cnn ) -- he is the face of new japan inc. 35-year-old yoshikazu tanaka , founder of mobile social gaming network gree , is the world 's second youngest self-made billionaire behind facebook 's mark zuckerberg . the similarities do n't end there . tanaka , son of a japanese salaryman , launched gree initially as a social network in japan before moving into mobile social gaming . i caught up with him at his hq in the mori building in downtown tokyo , one of the most desirable business addresses in the city . japan 's'zuckerberg'leads new wave of entrepreneurs he may be flying high , but philosophically he remains down to earth , from the tips of his shaggy hair to the soles of his bright red crocs . what do you think when you 're compared to mark zuckerberg ? i started my business in 2004 and facebook also started around 2004 . facebook became such a big company and i think they are doing well in how they are changing society . i think we ( gree ) can change society in that way too , so i want to continue making a challenge . how would you like to change japanese society ? we should change the way of thinking in the whole of japan . to do that , rather than by saying , we should do this , ' or we should do that , ' we should show what we can do by a new successful example . people say there is no culture of venture business in japan , but actually social games and our company , gree , became successful within seven years . so we want to have an impact on japan by showing that it can be done . what drives you ? gree originally started as my personal business using my money and my spare time . so of course it is good if i can make money out of it . however , my motivation is that i want to have an impact on society with my business . do you think your industry will become the most important part of japan 's economy ? it is true that the social gaming industry is an important industry for the japanese economy . originally there were many japanese game companies like nintendo which became successful globally . japan is an island and an industry like ours does n't have to worry about importing raw materials or exporting . in that sense we can do our business without having the disadvantage of being on an island , so i think it is a good industry for japan . what is the problem with older , traditional manufacturing businesses ? if they have a problem , i think it would be that they tried to compete only in the domestic market and did n't try the global market . that means they can only be successful in japan and they need to think more globally . what japan should do now ? of course it is easy to blame politicians but japan is democratic and its citizens choose the politicians . so the problem does not only exist in them . i think the biggest problem is that so many people have not been able to accept the fact that we can not survive without trying to compete globally . do you think mobile game industry can be a savior of japan ? i do n't know whether we can be a savior or not but i can say there are not many industries which can generate this much profit and become successful globally . not just our company but the whole of japan should consider developing an industry like that . | yoshikazu tanaka is billionaire founder of mobile games company , gree |
tanaka <tsp> tokyo ( cnn ) -- he is the face of new japan inc. 35-year-old yoshikazu tanaka , founder of mobile social gaming network gree , is the world 's second youngest self-made billionaire behind facebook 's mark zuckerberg . the similarities do n't end there . tanaka , son of a japanese salaryman , launched gree initially as a social network in japan before moving into mobile social gaming . i caught up with him at his hq in the mori building in downtown tokyo , one of the most desirable business addresses in the city . japan 's'zuckerberg'leads new wave of entrepreneurs he may be flying high , but philosophically he remains down to earth , from the tips of his shaggy hair to the soles of his bright red crocs . what do you think when you 're compared to mark zuckerberg ? i started my business in 2004 and facebook also started around 2004 . facebook became such a big company and i think they are doing well in how they are changing society . i think we ( gree ) can change society in that way too , so i want to continue making a challenge . how would you like to change japanese society ? we should change the way of thinking in the whole of japan . to do that , rather than by saying , we should do this , ' or we should do that , ' we should show what we can do by a new successful example . people say there is no culture of venture business in japan , but actually social games and our company , gree , became successful within seven years . so we want to have an impact on japan by showing that it can be done . what drives you ? gree originally started as my personal business using my money and my spare time . so of course it is good if i can make money out of it . however , my motivation is that i want to have an impact on society with my business . do you think your industry will become the most important part of japan 's economy ? it is true that the social gaming industry is an important industry for the japanese economy . originally there were many japanese game companies like nintendo which became successful globally . japan is an island and an industry like ours does n't have to worry about importing raw materials or exporting . in that sense we can do our business without having the disadvantage of being on an island , so i think it is a good industry for japan . what is the problem with older , traditional manufacturing businesses ? if they have a problem , i think it would be that they tried to compete only in the domestic market and did n't try the global market . that means they can only be successful in japan and they need to think more globally . what japan should do now ? of course it is easy to blame politicians but japan is democratic and its citizens choose the politicians . so the problem does not only exist in them . i think the biggest problem is that so many people have not been able to accept the fact that we can not survive without trying to compete globally . do you think mobile game industry can be a savior of japan ? i do n't know whether we can be a savior or not but i can say there are not many industries which can generate this much profit and become successful globally . not just our company but the whole of japan should consider developing an industry like that . | tanaka is often compared to facebook founder mark zuckerberg |
prince george <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a prisoner killed in a maryland county jail on sunday was a victim of vigilante justice , ' prince george 's county chief executive jack johnson said . ronnie white , 19 , died of strangulation and asphyxiation and had two broken bones in his neck , an autopsy showed . an attorney for white 's family said that because white was being held in solitary confinement at the prince george 's county correctional center , a corrections officer would have had to let whoever killed the prisoner into his cell . his death came two days after his arrest in connection with the death of prince george 's county police cpl . richard findley , who died friday after being struck by a truck . authorities believe that white was driving the truck , which was thought to be stolen . police were attempting to flag it down when findley was struck . the killing of the officer is absolutely abhorrent , but also , mr. white was presumed innocent and deserved his day in court just like any other citizens , ' johnson said monday night . we live in a constitutional democracy , and no one has the right to be judge and jury . ' the fbi 's baltimore field office said it has opened a civil rights investigation into white 's death . the justice department said tuesday that federal prosecutors have been in contact with the state police and fbi as well as county prosecutors and the department 's own civil rights division . in support of the prince george 's county state 's attorney 's office , which intends to retain lead responsibility for the criminal investigation , the u.s. attorney 's office will provide guidance and legal advice to the officials looking into the death and seeking to develop evidence of criminal violations , ' the department said in a written statement . johnson said monday that he had requested that the maryland state police conduct an independent investigation into white 's death . white family attorney bobby henry said there are only two ways someone could get into solitary confinement . watch why death has outraged family » ' you either have to be buzzed in from the booth -- i believe it 's called the control booth -- you need a key from there , or you have to get a key from one of two officers who were assigned to his unit on that day , ' henry said . the attorney said a yet to be identified person or persons took it upon themselves to be the judge , jury and executioner for mr . white . ' the family of ronnie white is absolutely , unequivocally outraged , incensed and deeply saddened that the life of their loved one could be taken so cold [ ly ] , so callously , ' henry said tuesday . something is dreadfully wrong with the system . ' county authorities have said that police are not suspects and that seven corrections officials and an unspecified number of supervisors were the only ones authorized to be in white 's cell . none has been suspended or removed . there were no surveillance cameras in the area of the jail where white was being held . white had not had the opportunity to meet with an attorney , henry said . a physical conducted when white was processed revealed no health issues , according to johnson . he was checked regularly in his cell and appeared fine when corrections officers saw him at 10:15 a.m. sunday . when officers brought him lunch 20 minutes later , he was unconscious and without a pulse , johnson said . henry said white 's family was not notified of his death until several hours after it occurred . they were told to go to prince george 's hospital to identify the body , he said , but upon arrival were told the state medical examiner 's office had taken custody of the body and it had been taken to baltimore . at this very moment , the family has not even seen the body of their loved one , ' henry said . they have been denied the opportunity to start the grieving process which naturally must occur . ' he said white 's family is calling upon the department of justice , the fbi , the maryland state police and county officials to conduct a thorough and exhaustive investigation into all of these tragic events , beginning with the events of friday , june 27 , and continuing up until this time . ' prince george 's county state 's attorney glenn ivey said a grand jury will be convened in the case . he said his office , which will handle any prosecutions that might result , is keeping an open mind . we 'll follow the evidence wherever it leads , ' he said . he added that he 's never seen one like this . we 've had deaths in custody , but this could be a unique one . ' cnn 's jeanne meserve and mike ahlers contributed to this report . | white was in solitary confinement at prince george 's county corrections center |
nigeria <tsp> ( cnn ) in matters regarding nigeria , the international community seems to be learning from experience . why galvanize support for a government that then exercises its sovereignty by not backing up that support ? why effuse sympathy on people who themselves seem to care so little ? when more than 200 girls were in april 2014 kidnapped by boko haram terrorists from their school in chibok , the international community rallied around nigeria . from michelle obama to alicia keys to malala yousafzai , personalities from across the globe lent their voices to the # bringbackourgirls social media campaign . this response contrasted greatly to the relative apathy which followed what has been described by amnesty international as boko haram 's deadliest attack -- the massacre of up to 2,000 mostly women and children in baga town of northeast nigeria last week . at about the same time that the baga bloodbath was making headlines around the world , the international community was rallying around france in support against the terrorist attacks on the charlie hebdo newspaper offices in paris , giving rise to the # jesuischarlie social media campaign . a simultaneous # iambaga social media campaign has failed to gain much steam . the igbo proverb points out that a man can not expect you to both marry a wife for him and then buy the new couple a bed on which to sleep . similarly , a country is expected to take responsibility and set sail with the winds of global support . france 's president francois hollande was addressing the world 's media and showing leadership within minutes of the attack . his government 's efforts to hunt down the terrorists were broadcast for all the world to see . nigeria 's president jonathan , on the other hand , waited two weeks before even offering a word on the chibok kidnappings . so far , he has said nothing about baga . however , president jonathan has issued a statement condemning the paris attacks . perhaps it is not that the nigerian government does not care about its own people . perhaps they simply want to spare us the repetitiveness of their public statements and condemnations : the perpetrators of this dastardly act shall be brought to book ' . no stone shall be left unturned ' . god will punish them and their families ' . but who cares about words and worn-out clichés ? action is what the nigerian people need . one year on , the fact remains that -- despite predictions that they would be released imminently -- the more than 200 missing girls have still not been found . the boko haram perpetrators , rather than cowering under the fire of the nigerian armed forces , have become bolder . more women and girls have been kidnapped . boys have been kidnapped . communities in the northeast of nigeria are being raided and razed on an almost weekly basis . it is also possible that the nigerian government 's incertitude is being misconstrued as sluggishness or inaction . maybe they do not believe that things are as bad as is being widely reported by the international media . last year , president jonathan 's wife , patience , openly queried the veracity of the missing girls report . this week , the nigerian defense ministry insisted that fewer than 150 lives were lost in the baga attack , as opposed to amnesty international 's quoted 2,000 . some nigerians i 've listened to have also expressed their doubts about the 2,000 figure . they believe that , similar to the world bank 's assertion that more than 67 % of nigerians are living in poverty , the baga reports are all part of the international community 's grand conspiracy to taint nigeria , to make our country look bad . they insist that the international media , in their quest to excavate bad news from africa , ' have simply latched on to an unverified casualty figure . unfortunately , the nigerian media -- presumably not part of this grand international conspiracy -- are unable to provide us with enough alternative information . they are too busy covering the preparations for the forthcoming elections scheduled to take place in february . political rallies are beamed live on local tv and radio stations for hours every day . photographs of grinning politicians are splashed on newspaper front pages every morning , their latest pronouncements and promises stealing all the headlines . current affairs programs and opinion pages are consumed with the adulation or derogation of either president jonathan or his main contender at the polls , general muhammadu buhari . baga and other such will clearly have to take a back seat until after the elections . nevertheless , the ongoing carnage in nigeria 's northeast will definitely be a determining factor in the outcome of the february elections . a recent snap poll by nigeria 's noipolls ( which partners with the u.s. 's gallup ) identified security as one of the key issues that nigerians want their president to focus on in 2015 . i suspect that those nigerians who believe the relatively popular theory in certain ethnic circles that the rise in boko haram attacks are being orchestrated by unknown forces who want president jonathan out by all means , will vote to keep him in -- just to prove a point to his enemies that their vicious efforts did not work . others who feel that jonathan is simply insensitive and incapable of handling the crisis will probably vote buhari . whatever happens at the polls , nigeria has to at some point face the boko haram issue squarely -- even after the international media frenzy around the group 's latest attacks has died down , as it surely will . the views expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author . | adaobi tricia nwaubani : nigeria 's government has expressed more sympathy for the paris terror attacks than the latest massacre within its own borders |
nigeria <tsp> ( cnn ) in matters regarding nigeria , the international community seems to be learning from experience . why galvanize support for a government that then exercises its sovereignty by not backing up that support ? why effuse sympathy on people who themselves seem to care so little ? when more than 200 girls were in april 2014 kidnapped by boko haram terrorists from their school in chibok , the international community rallied around nigeria . from michelle obama to alicia keys to malala yousafzai , personalities from across the globe lent their voices to the # bringbackourgirls social media campaign . this response contrasted greatly to the relative apathy which followed what has been described by amnesty international as boko haram 's deadliest attack -- the massacre of up to 2,000 mostly women and children in baga town of northeast nigeria last week . at about the same time that the baga bloodbath was making headlines around the world , the international community was rallying around france in support against the terrorist attacks on the charlie hebdo newspaper offices in paris , giving rise to the # jesuischarlie social media campaign . a simultaneous # iambaga social media campaign has failed to gain much steam . the igbo proverb points out that a man can not expect you to both marry a wife for him and then buy the new couple a bed on which to sleep . similarly , a country is expected to take responsibility and set sail with the winds of global support . france 's president francois hollande was addressing the world 's media and showing leadership within minutes of the attack . his government 's efforts to hunt down the terrorists were broadcast for all the world to see . nigeria 's president jonathan , on the other hand , waited two weeks before even offering a word on the chibok kidnappings . so far , he has said nothing about baga . however , president jonathan has issued a statement condemning the paris attacks . perhaps it is not that the nigerian government does not care about its own people . perhaps they simply want to spare us the repetitiveness of their public statements and condemnations : the perpetrators of this dastardly act shall be brought to book ' . no stone shall be left unturned ' . god will punish them and their families ' . but who cares about words and worn-out clichés ? action is what the nigerian people need . one year on , the fact remains that -- despite predictions that they would be released imminently -- the more than 200 missing girls have still not been found . the boko haram perpetrators , rather than cowering under the fire of the nigerian armed forces , have become bolder . more women and girls have been kidnapped . boys have been kidnapped . communities in the northeast of nigeria are being raided and razed on an almost weekly basis . it is also possible that the nigerian government 's incertitude is being misconstrued as sluggishness or inaction . maybe they do not believe that things are as bad as is being widely reported by the international media . last year , president jonathan 's wife , patience , openly queried the veracity of the missing girls report . this week , the nigerian defense ministry insisted that fewer than 150 lives were lost in the baga attack , as opposed to amnesty international 's quoted 2,000 . some nigerians i 've listened to have also expressed their doubts about the 2,000 figure . they believe that , similar to the world bank 's assertion that more than 67 % of nigerians are living in poverty , the baga reports are all part of the international community 's grand conspiracy to taint nigeria , to make our country look bad . they insist that the international media , in their quest to excavate bad news from africa , ' have simply latched on to an unverified casualty figure . unfortunately , the nigerian media -- presumably not part of this grand international conspiracy -- are unable to provide us with enough alternative information . they are too busy covering the preparations for the forthcoming elections scheduled to take place in february . political rallies are beamed live on local tv and radio stations for hours every day . photographs of grinning politicians are splashed on newspaper front pages every morning , their latest pronouncements and promises stealing all the headlines . current affairs programs and opinion pages are consumed with the adulation or derogation of either president jonathan or his main contender at the polls , general muhammadu buhari . baga and other such will clearly have to take a back seat until after the elections . nevertheless , the ongoing carnage in nigeria 's northeast will definitely be a determining factor in the outcome of the february elections . a recent snap poll by nigeria 's noipolls ( which partners with the u.s. 's gallup ) identified security as one of the key issues that nigerians want their president to focus on in 2015 . i suspect that those nigerians who believe the relatively popular theory in certain ethnic circles that the rise in boko haram attacks are being orchestrated by unknown forces who want president jonathan out by all means , will vote to keep him in -- just to prove a point to his enemies that their vicious efforts did not work . others who feel that jonathan is simply insensitive and incapable of handling the crisis will probably vote buhari . whatever happens at the polls , nigeria has to at some point face the boko haram issue squarely -- even after the international media frenzy around the group 's latest attacks has died down , as it surely will . the views expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author . | up to 2,000 people in northeast nigeria killed in boko haram 's worst ever attack in early january |
pablo <tsp> ( cnn ) -- hip-hop and rap artist petey pablo is facing nearly three years in prison after sentencing on a guilty plea of possessing a stolen firearm , according to federal prosecutors . pablo , whose real name is moses barrett , was sentenced monday in u.s. district court in new bern , north carolina , to 35 months in prison . the sentencing came following a march guilty plea from the 38-year-old performer , who lives in wake forest , north carolina . according to a statement from thomas g. walker , u.s. attorney for the eastern district of north carolina , pablo was going through security at raleigh-durham international airport on september 11 , 2010 , when a loaded semi-automatic 9 mm pistol was found in his bag . pablo was attempting to board a flight to los angeles , the statement said . federal authorities determined that the pistol had been stolen during a residential burglary in california in 2005 . pablo , who is best known for his songs raise up ' and freek-a-leek ' is scheduled to begin serving his sentence in december . | pablo pleaded guilty in march to possessing a stolen firearm |
pablo <tsp> ( cnn ) -- hip-hop and rap artist petey pablo is facing nearly three years in prison after sentencing on a guilty plea of possessing a stolen firearm , according to federal prosecutors . pablo , whose real name is moses barrett , was sentenced monday in u.s. district court in new bern , north carolina , to 35 months in prison . the sentencing came following a march guilty plea from the 38-year-old performer , who lives in wake forest , north carolina . according to a statement from thomas g. walker , u.s. attorney for the eastern district of north carolina , pablo was going through security at raleigh-durham international airport on september 11 , 2010 , when a loaded semi-automatic 9 mm pistol was found in his bag . pablo was attempting to board a flight to los angeles , the statement said . federal authorities determined that the pistol had been stolen during a residential burglary in california in 2005 . pablo , who is best known for his songs raise up ' and freek-a-leek ' is scheduled to begin serving his sentence in december . | petey pablo was stopped at a north carolina airport last september |
zoomaal <tsp> ( cnn ) -- things are looking up for entrepreneurs in the middle east as a new breed of crowdfunding is emerging to help bring life to innovative ideas from the region . based on popular u.s. sites like kickstarter and indiegogo they aim to connect everyone , from engineers in egypt to creatives in lebanon , with a new way of funding . zoomaal is one such site that allows someone to post a project ' like an album , a book or an invention , which the public can then pledge money to . each project must fit into one of the platform 's categories and be accompanied by a video , a biography of the project owner and a series of gifts ' to incentivize potential backers to pledge money . in line with regional sensitivities , banned projects include anything to do with alcohol , politics , violence , religion and pornography . abdallah absi , 21 , is the platform 's founder who has been involved with tech start-ups since he was 16 . there are many projects in the arab world that do n't have the right connections ( to ) fund them , ' said absi . we are trying to market these projects through strategic partnerships . ' currently entrepreneurs from 22 countries across the middle east and north africa can post a project on the site . projects include an album launch , a documentary and a new take on the toothbrush . globally , crowdfunding is seeing explosive growth . in 2012 , the market grew 81 % to $ 2.7 billion , according industry researchers massolution . but in the middle east the concept is only just catching on . a lack of financial support and , crucially , mentorship is something that absi believes is holding back creative projects and nascent start-ups in the region . for habib haddad , ceo of wamda , and one of four venture capital funders behind zoomaal , the true potential of arab crowdfunding is the connections and exposure it provides . there is definitely a funding gap , but that 's not the biggest gap . access to early-stage money is actually now increasing in the middle east . this kind of platform for the middle east is something that will push the ecosystem of innovators forward , ' he added . it will help democratise creativity . ' absi believes the key to making this happen is education and outreach because some creative communities are not very tech savvy ... and they do n't know about the opportunity they can have from crowdfunding . ' another crowdfunding platform to emerge in the region is cairo-based yomken . a non-profit social enterprise , it aims to link up low-tech manufacturers -- who , in egypt , are often slum-dwellers -- with artists , scientists , engineers and product designers who can help them innovate in their businesses . once a prototype of a new product has been made , it can be posted on the site , allowing customers to pre-order . adel el-dib , 49 , is a potter yomken has helped . seven years ago , el-dib who crafts everything from pots and bowls to decorative earthenware , moved to using cheaper fiberglass instead of clay to make food and water coolers . studies have shown that inhaling fiberglass can cause lung problems , according to the american lung association . yomken connected el-dib with an artist and a physicist to design an eco-friendly clay cooler for food and drinks . the new design , based on an ancient water cooler known as a qolah ' made with an innovative clay mix , can cool water in 12 hours in summer and two in winter . el-dib has sold his new product on yomken . i always worked on clay since ( i was ) 12 years old , but lately given the drop in demand , i shifted to fiberglass . the designers brought by yomken have shown me new designs and i was convinced to try ( them ) . hopefully , they will bring back the clay industry to the market , ' he said . the platform was set up in 2012 by egyptian tamer taha , 24 , with funding from the world bank . according to taha , basic manufacturing makes up almost 90 % of the egyptian market , and is increasingly under pressure from other manufacturing bases , especially in asia . we try to work on this link from the open innovation part of the website ( to the crowdfunding part ) ... to try to market innovative products that are coming from egyptian minds , ' he said . yomken is a politically neutral organization , says taha , but the security situation after the recent military coup that removed mohamed morsy as egypt 's president did paralyze work . we hope the month of ramadan ( the annual month of fasting and prayer for muslims ) will bring all the disputing parties together from their narrow political interests and focus on the nationwide interest of the people and the economy , ' he said . this is what really matters . we believe that now ... it 's time for the arab nations to rise again through science and innovation . ' | sites like zoomaal and yomken follow crowdfunding model of u.s. sites like kickstarter |
zoomaal <tsp> ( cnn ) -- things are looking up for entrepreneurs in the middle east as a new breed of crowdfunding is emerging to help bring life to innovative ideas from the region . based on popular u.s. sites like kickstarter and indiegogo they aim to connect everyone , from engineers in egypt to creatives in lebanon , with a new way of funding . zoomaal is one such site that allows someone to post a project ' like an album , a book or an invention , which the public can then pledge money to . each project must fit into one of the platform 's categories and be accompanied by a video , a biography of the project owner and a series of gifts ' to incentivize potential backers to pledge money . in line with regional sensitivities , banned projects include anything to do with alcohol , politics , violence , religion and pornography . abdallah absi , 21 , is the platform 's founder who has been involved with tech start-ups since he was 16 . there are many projects in the arab world that do n't have the right connections ( to ) fund them , ' said absi . we are trying to market these projects through strategic partnerships . ' currently entrepreneurs from 22 countries across the middle east and north africa can post a project on the site . projects include an album launch , a documentary and a new take on the toothbrush . globally , crowdfunding is seeing explosive growth . in 2012 , the market grew 81 % to $ 2.7 billion , according industry researchers massolution . but in the middle east the concept is only just catching on . a lack of financial support and , crucially , mentorship is something that absi believes is holding back creative projects and nascent start-ups in the region . for habib haddad , ceo of wamda , and one of four venture capital funders behind zoomaal , the true potential of arab crowdfunding is the connections and exposure it provides . there is definitely a funding gap , but that 's not the biggest gap . access to early-stage money is actually now increasing in the middle east . this kind of platform for the middle east is something that will push the ecosystem of innovators forward , ' he added . it will help democratise creativity . ' absi believes the key to making this happen is education and outreach because some creative communities are not very tech savvy ... and they do n't know about the opportunity they can have from crowdfunding . ' another crowdfunding platform to emerge in the region is cairo-based yomken . a non-profit social enterprise , it aims to link up low-tech manufacturers -- who , in egypt , are often slum-dwellers -- with artists , scientists , engineers and product designers who can help them innovate in their businesses . once a prototype of a new product has been made , it can be posted on the site , allowing customers to pre-order . adel el-dib , 49 , is a potter yomken has helped . seven years ago , el-dib who crafts everything from pots and bowls to decorative earthenware , moved to using cheaper fiberglass instead of clay to make food and water coolers . studies have shown that inhaling fiberglass can cause lung problems , according to the american lung association . yomken connected el-dib with an artist and a physicist to design an eco-friendly clay cooler for food and drinks . the new design , based on an ancient water cooler known as a qolah ' made with an innovative clay mix , can cool water in 12 hours in summer and two in winter . el-dib has sold his new product on yomken . i always worked on clay since ( i was ) 12 years old , but lately given the drop in demand , i shifted to fiberglass . the designers brought by yomken have shown me new designs and i was convinced to try ( them ) . hopefully , they will bring back the clay industry to the market , ' he said . the platform was set up in 2012 by egyptian tamer taha , 24 , with funding from the world bank . according to taha , basic manufacturing makes up almost 90 % of the egyptian market , and is increasingly under pressure from other manufacturing bases , especially in asia . we try to work on this link from the open innovation part of the website ( to the crowdfunding part ) ... to try to market innovative products that are coming from egyptian minds , ' he said . yomken is a politically neutral organization , says taha , but the security situation after the recent military coup that removed mohamed morsy as egypt 's president did paralyze work . we hope the month of ramadan ( the annual month of fasting and prayer for muslims ) will bring all the disputing parties together from their narrow political interests and focus on the nationwide interest of the people and the economy , ' he said . this is what really matters . we believe that now ... it 's time for the arab nations to rise again through science and innovation . ' | educating artisans and innovators of potential of crowdfunding is a challenge says zoomaal 's founder |
qatari <tsp> ( cnn ) it 's one of the biggest sporting events on the planet and in a growing market for new fans , football 's global governing body has cut a media rights deal for the 2026 world cup over a decade ahead of the tournament . fifa extended its north american media rights agreements -- handing fox the english language deal and nbcuniversal 's telemundo the spanish language rights -- for an event in which the 2026 host nation has still to be determined . these agreements guarantee wide distribution for fifa tournaments across the u.s. and canada , ' said fifa director of tv niclas ericson in a statement . together , we will be able to further promote football in north america and build on the impressive interest shown by audiences in these major territories during the 2014 fifa world cup . ' just days after the english premier league sold domestic television rights for over $ 8 billion for the three seasons from 2016 , fifa declined to detail what the latest north american deal was worth . football 's world governing body also refused to comment when asked if it had received sealed bids from rival broadcasters . neither espn nor nbc responded to a cnn email asking if they had bid for the english language rights . that raises the question as to whether fox , which already had agreements in place for the 2018 and 2022 editions following a $ 425 million deal signed in 2011 , won the latest contract without any competition . the u.s. broadcaster has been outspoken over fifa 's plans to move the 2022 world cup to the qatari winter because of fears over the intense heat during the gulf state 's summer months . while a working party is expected to recommend suitable dates for the 2022 tournament on february 23 , a switch to winter would play havoc with the u.s. sporting schedule . you go into buying a world cup and you believe it 's going to be in the same time frame it 's always been , ' fox sports president eric shanks said last year . clearly in america there 's much more competition for ratings points . ' a move to winter would be bad news for fox given it could clash with the nfl playoffs and potentially the 2022 winter olympics . some media commentators have suggested fox was awarded the latest deal on the proviso that it will not make a complaint when the 2022 tournament is shifted to the qatari winter . potentially the 2026 tournament could be held in north america given it will be 32 years since the world cup was last held there . yet the question remains why would n't fifa want to benefit from a bidding war between fox , espn and nbc and why sell the rights so early ? fifa aims to distribute the highest quality coverage of its international tournaments to as wide an audience as possible , ' said fifa in a statement to cnn . fifa constantly reviews and monitors global market conditions for sports media rights in order to make the best decision for each market . the agreement extensions announced on thursday were the result of a detailed assessment of the market and discussions with the relevant broadcasters . ' nbc , which retained spanish-language rights through telemundo , refused to comment on whether it had been invited to bid for the english version ' we were offered the opportunity to extend our spanish-language rights for another cycle ... and we were happy to be able to complete the transaction , ' nbc sports said in a statement . the 2014 world cup final between argentina and germany was watched by an estimated 26.5 million in the u.s. which was up 7 % on the 2010 figures . these events are some of the world 's most important sports competitions , and it is our privilege to be entrusted with these rights in the united states , ' fox said in a statement . | fox previously against moving 2022 world cup to qatari winter |
barbour <tsp> ( cnn ) -- getting the convicted murderers pardoned by outgoing mississippi gov . haley barbour back in prison is like being on a manhunt with one arm tied behind my back , ' the state 's attorney general said . highlighting the difficulty is the case of joseph ozment , whom authorities finally located monday in wyoming , said jim hood , the attorney general . we ca n't treat him as an escapee . he has a document that says he 's a free man as of now , ' said hood . all we have is a civil document we served him with . that is the most we can do . if he does n't show up in court , we will move to hold him in contempt . that 's the difficult part of this process . ' ozment 's whereabouts had been unknown since his mother picked him up on january 8 after his release . ozment is one of four convicted murderers barbour pardoned this month . the others are : david gatlin , charles hooker and anthony mccray . ozment did not appear at a court hearing in a case challenging the pardons . this week , a jackson , mississippi , judge is expected to hear the case again . if ozment does not appear , the judge can hold him in contempt , hood said . as he closed out his second term as governor , barbour granted full pardons ' -- meaning the convict 's record is effectively wiped clean -- to more than 200 people found guilty of a variety of crimes . all four of the convicted murderers he pardoned were serving life sentences and worked as trusties at the governor 's mansion . the move stirred outrage among relatives of the pardoned murderers'victims . it 's just an every minute , constant , in the back of your mind , where is he ? what is he doing ? ' said mary mcabee , sister of rick montgomery , a store clerk shot to death by ozment in 1992 . ozment pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole . i 'm fearful . he 's a cold-blooded murderer to do what he 's done , and if he thinks that he may go back to prison . what 's he got to lose ? ' she said . also concerned is tiffany ellis brewer , whose sister was shot and killed by david gatlin . gatlin walked into a trailer in 1993 where his estranged wife , tammy gatlin , lived and shot her in the head as she held their 6-week-old baby in her arms . brewer said she wants her sister 's killer back in prison . he got life plus 30 years , you know ? and he served 18 of them . my sister lived 20 years . it 's ridiculous , ' she said . late monday , hood spoke to cnn 's ac360 , ' slamming barbour and questioning the motives behind his pardons . he ran the office of the governor as if it was mississippi in the 1950s , ' said hood . the attorney general , a democrat , said many of the inmates barbour , a republican , pardoned came from influential families or had connections to the republican party . there 's not any logical explanation other than it was just a whim , and by doing it on a whim at the last moment that 's how he violated our constitution , ' hood said . barbour has defended his pardons . on friday , he appeared on cnn 's john king usa , ' saying ozment and the others have been rehabilitated . he has no obligation to do anything . he 's been pardoned . he 's a free man , ' barbour said . authorities found ozment at a hotel in laramie , wyoming , on monday . he had been staying under another name . cnn 's rich phillips contributed to this report . watch anderson cooper 360° weeknights 10pm et . for the latest from ac360° click here . | mississippi 's attorney general slams outgoing gov . haley barbour |
barbour <tsp> ( cnn ) -- getting the convicted murderers pardoned by outgoing mississippi gov . haley barbour back in prison is like being on a manhunt with one arm tied behind my back , ' the state 's attorney general said . highlighting the difficulty is the case of joseph ozment , whom authorities finally located monday in wyoming , said jim hood , the attorney general . we ca n't treat him as an escapee . he has a document that says he 's a free man as of now , ' said hood . all we have is a civil document we served him with . that is the most we can do . if he does n't show up in court , we will move to hold him in contempt . that 's the difficult part of this process . ' ozment 's whereabouts had been unknown since his mother picked him up on january 8 after his release . ozment is one of four convicted murderers barbour pardoned this month . the others are : david gatlin , charles hooker and anthony mccray . ozment did not appear at a court hearing in a case challenging the pardons . this week , a jackson , mississippi , judge is expected to hear the case again . if ozment does not appear , the judge can hold him in contempt , hood said . as he closed out his second term as governor , barbour granted full pardons ' -- meaning the convict 's record is effectively wiped clean -- to more than 200 people found guilty of a variety of crimes . all four of the convicted murderers he pardoned were serving life sentences and worked as trusties at the governor 's mansion . the move stirred outrage among relatives of the pardoned murderers'victims . it 's just an every minute , constant , in the back of your mind , where is he ? what is he doing ? ' said mary mcabee , sister of rick montgomery , a store clerk shot to death by ozment in 1992 . ozment pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole . i 'm fearful . he 's a cold-blooded murderer to do what he 's done , and if he thinks that he may go back to prison . what 's he got to lose ? ' she said . also concerned is tiffany ellis brewer , whose sister was shot and killed by david gatlin . gatlin walked into a trailer in 1993 where his estranged wife , tammy gatlin , lived and shot her in the head as she held their 6-week-old baby in her arms . brewer said she wants her sister 's killer back in prison . he got life plus 30 years , you know ? and he served 18 of them . my sister lived 20 years . it 's ridiculous , ' she said . late monday , hood spoke to cnn 's ac360 , ' slamming barbour and questioning the motives behind his pardons . he ran the office of the governor as if it was mississippi in the 1950s , ' said hood . the attorney general , a democrat , said many of the inmates barbour , a republican , pardoned came from influential families or had connections to the republican party . there 's not any logical explanation other than it was just a whim , and by doing it on a whim at the last moment that 's how he violated our constitution , ' hood said . barbour has defended his pardons . on friday , he appeared on cnn 's john king usa , ' saying ozment and the others have been rehabilitated . he has no obligation to do anything . he 's been pardoned . he 's a free man , ' barbour said . authorities found ozment at a hotel in laramie , wyoming , on monday . he had been staying under another name . cnn 's rich phillips contributed to this report . watch anderson cooper 360° weeknights 10pm et . for the latest from ac360° click here . | he was released from prison after a pardon from barbour |
obama <tsp> ( cnn ) -- over the past couple of weeks , i have been asking random people who identify as republicans if they trust mitt romney , and each of them gave me an answer like this -- i trust him more than i trust obama . ' it 's just a long winded way of saying no . ' they said they did want to see his taxes . they said they have reservations about a major tax plan lacking specifics . some said they saw the video of him describing himself as a pro-abortion rights moderate ; others knew that in the hardcover version of his book no apology , ' he expressed pride in romneycare and believed that we can accomplish the same thing for everyone in the country . ' they know he flip flops . misspeaks . lies . and yet , their dislike of president barack obama is so strong that they 're willing to overlook that whole character thing and swallow the bitter pill that is romney . how can they do that , you say ? well for starters , obama is n't exactly a rock of gibraltar himself . politifact 's obameter ' has been keeping track of the more than 500 promises the president made during the 2008 campaign and found thus far he 's kept 37 % of them . he 's broken 16 % , compromised on 14 % and is still working on another 22 % . so even though romney smells , obama 's not exactly lilacs . he promised to address gun control . he has n't . he promised to close gitmo . it 's still open . obama was for gay marriage , then he was against it , and now he 's for it again . if you believe his evolution was n't about politics , then you probably believe jimmy carter was robbed in 1980 . this is why some republicans are willing to vote for a guy they may not trust : he 's viewed as the lesser of two evils . but pointing out the evils in the other party does nothing to address the evils in their own . here 's the thing : the question of trusting mitt romney has nothing to do with barack obama . it 's about romney . voters might not like to think about that too much , but they need to look beyond campaign sleight of hand to give it some serious thought because the future of the middle class depends on it . this week , both romney and vp hopeful paul ryan have been touting a multitrillion dollar tax-cutting plan with no details , essentially asking voters to take it on faith that it 'll all work out . many conservative pundits , including george will , say romney 's math -- where it exists -- is a bit fuzzy and all romney can say is trust me . ' so again , i ask republicans : do you ? not in comparison to obama , but in comparison to your understanding of the word trust . knowing what you know -- and do n't know . because if he wins , saying i trust him more than i trust obama ' is not going to help matters in january . it 's not going to protect the middle class'ability to write off the interest on their mortgages or deduct charitable giving . romney said the plan wo n't touch those deductions , but he wo n't tell us which deductions it will touch . trust him with our taxes , he says . and yet , he wo n't trust us to even look at his . at the republican national convention , mitt 's wife , ann , painted a picture of their early years together as if the two of them were barely getting by . and then an old boston globe interview surfaced in which she said we were happy , studying hard . neither one of us had a job , because mitt had enough of an investment from stock that we could sell off a little at a time . ' realizing that struggling college students work and do n't usually live off investments , she backed away from her earlier characterization , telling meet the press ' later that , mitt and i do recognize that we have not had a financial struggle in our lives . ' uhm ... you do know that she did n't just realize this , right ? you do know that her speech was designed to manipulate voters in an attempt to paint her husband as a regular joe , a guy just like them , someone they could trust . so ... do you ? do you trust mitt romney ? obama has only kept 37 % of his promises . but politifact 's gop pledge-o-meter , which they describe as having followed dozens of promises made in 2010 by republican leaders ' and in their pledge to america , found that the gop has only kept 19 % of its promises . if you ca n't trust a guy who has only kept 37 % of his promises , how do you trust leaders that have only kept 19 % of theirs ? better yet , how do you trust a guy , who as governor of massachusetts , signed an assault weapon ban in 2004 , reiterated his support for a ban in 2007 and then shows up at an nra convention in 2012 talking like some sort of john wayne wannabe ? i do n't think you can . which i guess is why many republicans have a hard time saying they do . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of lz granderson . | he says obama has also broken promises , played politics , but gop track record worse |
obama <tsp> ( cnn ) -- over the past couple of weeks , i have been asking random people who identify as republicans if they trust mitt romney , and each of them gave me an answer like this -- i trust him more than i trust obama . ' it 's just a long winded way of saying no . ' they said they did want to see his taxes . they said they have reservations about a major tax plan lacking specifics . some said they saw the video of him describing himself as a pro-abortion rights moderate ; others knew that in the hardcover version of his book no apology , ' he expressed pride in romneycare and believed that we can accomplish the same thing for everyone in the country . ' they know he flip flops . misspeaks . lies . and yet , their dislike of president barack obama is so strong that they 're willing to overlook that whole character thing and swallow the bitter pill that is romney . how can they do that , you say ? well for starters , obama is n't exactly a rock of gibraltar himself . politifact 's obameter ' has been keeping track of the more than 500 promises the president made during the 2008 campaign and found thus far he 's kept 37 % of them . he 's broken 16 % , compromised on 14 % and is still working on another 22 % . so even though romney smells , obama 's not exactly lilacs . he promised to address gun control . he has n't . he promised to close gitmo . it 's still open . obama was for gay marriage , then he was against it , and now he 's for it again . if you believe his evolution was n't about politics , then you probably believe jimmy carter was robbed in 1980 . this is why some republicans are willing to vote for a guy they may not trust : he 's viewed as the lesser of two evils . but pointing out the evils in the other party does nothing to address the evils in their own . here 's the thing : the question of trusting mitt romney has nothing to do with barack obama . it 's about romney . voters might not like to think about that too much , but they need to look beyond campaign sleight of hand to give it some serious thought because the future of the middle class depends on it . this week , both romney and vp hopeful paul ryan have been touting a multitrillion dollar tax-cutting plan with no details , essentially asking voters to take it on faith that it 'll all work out . many conservative pundits , including george will , say romney 's math -- where it exists -- is a bit fuzzy and all romney can say is trust me . ' so again , i ask republicans : do you ? not in comparison to obama , but in comparison to your understanding of the word trust . knowing what you know -- and do n't know . because if he wins , saying i trust him more than i trust obama ' is not going to help matters in january . it 's not going to protect the middle class'ability to write off the interest on their mortgages or deduct charitable giving . romney said the plan wo n't touch those deductions , but he wo n't tell us which deductions it will touch . trust him with our taxes , he says . and yet , he wo n't trust us to even look at his . at the republican national convention , mitt 's wife , ann , painted a picture of their early years together as if the two of them were barely getting by . and then an old boston globe interview surfaced in which she said we were happy , studying hard . neither one of us had a job , because mitt had enough of an investment from stock that we could sell off a little at a time . ' realizing that struggling college students work and do n't usually live off investments , she backed away from her earlier characterization , telling meet the press ' later that , mitt and i do recognize that we have not had a financial struggle in our lives . ' uhm ... you do know that she did n't just realize this , right ? you do know that her speech was designed to manipulate voters in an attempt to paint her husband as a regular joe , a guy just like them , someone they could trust . so ... do you ? do you trust mitt romney ? obama has only kept 37 % of his promises . but politifact 's gop pledge-o-meter , which they describe as having followed dozens of promises made in 2010 by republican leaders ' and in their pledge to america , found that the gop has only kept 19 % of its promises . if you ca n't trust a guy who has only kept 37 % of his promises , how do you trust leaders that have only kept 19 % of theirs ? better yet , how do you trust a guy , who as governor of massachusetts , signed an assault weapon ban in 2004 , reiterated his support for a ban in 2007 and then shows up at an nra convention in 2012 talking like some sort of john wayne wannabe ? i do n't think you can . which i guess is why many republicans have a hard time saying they do . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of lz granderson . | lz : asked if they trust romney , a group of republicans replied , more than obama ' |
obama <tsp> ( cnn ) -- u.s. president barack obama arrived in south korea on wednesday , where the leaders of top global economies will convene at the g-20 summit to try to stabilize the world 's financial markets . obama left indonesia hours early , because volcanic ash from mount merapi could have grounded air force one , administration officials said . the president 's visit to seoul will include a meeting with south korean president lee myung-bak and a meeting with chinese president hu jintao . obama is also scheduled to deliver a speech to u.s. troops in south korea on thursday , the veterans day holiday in the united states . tensions about currency and trade are likely to run high at the g-20 meeting , which will be held thursday and friday in seoul , the south korean capital . officials in china and the united states have accused the other of manipulating its currency at the expense of other economies . and the g-20 has acknowledged that the global economic recovery is advancing in a fragile and uneven way . ' widespread protests are expected at the summit , for which south korea has mobilized its largest security force ever , according to the yonhap news agency . a total of 50,000 police and riot police are being deployed , authorities told yonhap . a number of south korean union and civic groups are gearing up for large protests against the g-20 , while other groups are planning unrelated rallies in hopes of drawing international media attention . protests by muslims in indonesia also preceded obama 's visit there . but the president focused on the two countries'shared principles of unity and tolerance when he delivered a highly anticipated speech at the university of indonesia right before he left for south korea . in his speech , obama reflected on the four years he spent in indonesia as a child , referring to how he and his family were warmly accepted . he drew cheers when he sprinkled sayings from the local malay language , such as selamat datang ' -- a greeting of welcome -- and the national motto bhinneka tunggal ika , ' which means unity in diversity . ' noting that malay is one of hundreds of languages of the archipelago nation , obama lauded indonesia for its spirit of inclusiveness despite its diverse population and history of dictatorship . but even as this land of my youth has changed in so many ways , those things that i learned to love about indonesia -- that spirit of tolerance that is written into your constitution , symbolized in your mosques and churches and temples standing alongside each other ; that spirit that is embodied in your people -- that still lives on , ' he said . obama said he returned as president of the united states seeking a deep and enduring partnership ' with indonesia . america has a stake in an indonesia that is growing , with prosperity that is broadly shared among the indonesian people , because a rising middle class here means new markets for our goods , just as america is a market for yours , ' he said . grappling with a troubled u.s. economy , the obama administration has highlighted the strengthening of economic and military ties during the president 's 10-day asia tour . obama started his trip with a three-day stay in india , before heading to indonesia . in mumbai on saturday , the president unveiled about $ 10 billion in contracts for u.s. exports to india . it is asia 's third-largest economy and one of the world 's few growth markets . speaking in new delhi on monday , obama said , we make some of the best products in the world and we want to sell them to a growing indian market . ' at the seoul summit , g-20 leaders are expected to focus on the global economic recovery and mechanisms to ensure balance and sustainable growth . we see the g-20 as fundamental not just to our international economic agenda , but to our ability to have a lasting recovery at home , because fostering balance , global growth is essential to fostering growth here in the american economy , ' ben rhodes , deputy national security adviser for strategic communications said ahead of obama 's asia trip . collectively , the group of 20 accounts for about 85 percent of global economic output . the 1997 asian financial crisis prompted the creation of the group . the g-20 includes industrialized nations and developing economies , which focus on economic issues and economic policy coordination . if you look at the trend lines in the 21st century , the rise of asia , the rise of individual countries within asia , is one of the defining stories of our time , ' rhodes said . we see core u.s. national interests that will be advanced by us playing a key role in helping to shape the future of the region and making clear that we 're an asian and a pacific power , ' rhodes added . after south korea , obama will head to japan for the apec summit , which will be held in yokohama on saturday and sunday . twenty-one countries form the asia-pacific economic cooperation , which focuses on economic coordination in the asia pacific region . further economic integration [ and ] trade liberalization in asia pacific is vital to our own interests and our ability to export more and grow our economy here at home , ' national security advisor mike froman said ahead of obama 's asia trip . the president is scheduled to return to the united states on sunday . | obama 's visit to seoul will include a meeting with the presidents of south korea and china |
dannel malloy <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the connecticut senate on thursday voted to repeal the death penalty , setting the stage for connecticut to join several states that have recently abolished capital punishment . in the last five years , new jersey , new mexico , new york and illinois have repealed the death penalty . california voters will decide the issue in november . the bill now goes to the house of representatives , where it is also expected to pass . gov . dannel malloy , a democrat , has vowed to sign the measure into law should it reach his desk , his office said . for everyone , it 's a vote of conscience , ' said senate president donald williams jr. , a democrat who says he 's long supported a repeal . we have a majority of legislators in connecticut in favor of this so that the energies of our criminal justice system can be focused in a more appropriate manner . ' in 2009 , state lawmakers in both houses tried to pass a similar bill , but were ultimately blocked by then-gov . jodi rell , a republican . capital punishment has existed in connecticut since its colonial days . but the state was forced to review its death penalty laws beginning in 1972 when a supreme court decision required greater consistency in its application . a moratorium was then imposed until a 1976 court decision upheld the constitutionality of capital punishment . since then , connecticut juries have handed down 15 death sentences . of those , only one person has actually been executed , according to the death penalty information center , a nonpartisan group that studies death penalty laws . michael ross , a convicted serial killer , was put to death by lethal injection in 2005 after giving up his appeals . it 's not a question of whether it 's morally wrong , it 's just that it is n't working , ' said richard dieter , the group 's executive director . i think when you hear of 15 to 20 years of uncertain appeals , that 's not closure and that 's not justice . it 's a slow , grinding process . ' eleven people are currently on death row in connecticut , including steven hayes and joshua komisarjevsky , who both were sentenced for their roles in the 2007 murders of the petit family in cheshire , connecticut . the high-profile case drew national attention and sparked conversations about home security and capital punishment . in vetoing the measure to eliminate the death penalty in 2009 , rell cited the cheshire deaths . dr. william petit , the sole survivor in that attack , has remained a staunch critic of repeal efforts . we believe in the death penalty because we believe it is really the only true , just punishment for certain heinous and depraved murders , ' petit told cnn affiliate wfsb . advocates of the existing law say capital punishment can act as a criminal deterrent and provides justice for victims . opponents say capital punishment is often applied inconsistently , can be discriminatory and has not proven to be an effective deterrent . they also point to instances in which wrongful convictions have been overturned with new investigative methods , including forensic testing . mistakes can be made and you may not know about it until science later exposes them , ' said dieter . but a recent quinnipiac poll found that 62 % of connecticut residents think abolishing the death penalty is a bad idea . ' no doubt the gruesome cheshire murders still affect public opinion regarding convicts on death row , ' said quinnipiac university poll director douglas schwartz . that number jumps to 66 % among connecticut men , and drops to 58 % among the state 's women , according to the poll . the senate 's proposed law is prospective in nature , meaning that it would not apply to those already sentenced to death . read more about this story from cnn affiliate wfsb . | gov . dannel malloy , a democrat , has vowed to sign the measure into law |
russian <tsp> london ( cnn ) -- a breakthrough in graphene research which could pave the way for new smaller , faster , more powerful computer chips has be made by uk researchers . scientists at the uk 's university of manchester say they have demonstrated how graphene -- a two-dimensional material made from a single layer of carbon atoms -- could look inside electronic circuits of the future . graphene has been hailed as a miracle material ' which could revolutionize materials science because of its unique properties . measuring one atom thick , it it the thinnest material on earth -- a stack of three million sheets would rise to the grand height of one millimeter . graphene is also the strongest ( 200 times stronger than steel ) , the most flexible and the most conductive material in the world -- which makes it an attractive alternative to the silicon chip . in their study , published in the journal nature physics , researchers report how they created a four-layered structure consisting of two sheets of graphene sandwiched between two sheets of boron nitride -- a similar two-dimensional material with a thin hexagonal-like structure . creating the multilayer structure has allowed us to isolate graphene from negative influence of the environment and control graphene 's electronic properties in a way it was impossible before , ' leonid ponomarenko , lead author of the study . this negative influence ' relates to graphene 's ultra sensitivity to gases and humidity says ponomarenko , which scientists at the university reported on back in 2007 . to make its properties more controllable , we have to protect it with something , ' he said . the demonstration brings a replacement for the silicon chip one step closer , according to ponomarenko . they are reaching their limit for being scaled down , he says , and as computers get more powerful silicon is struggling to meet the increasing energy demands . the discovery of graphene was made at the university in 2004 by russian physicists andre geim and konstantin novoselov , who received the nobel prize for physics for their work in 2010 . commenting on the new research , geim said : graphene encapsulated within boron nitride offers the best and most advanced platform for future graphene electronics . it solves nasty issues about graphene 's stability and quality ... ' it could be only a matter of several months before we have encapsulated graphene transistors with characteristics better than previously demonstrated , ' he added . recent advances at manchester and other uk universities has prompted the british government to invest â£50 million ( $ 78 million ) in a research hub with the aim of maximizing the commercial potential of graphene . its not just computer circuit boards that graphene promises to transform . the discovery that it is extremely sensitive to single molecules of gas could , according to geim and novoselov , lead to the development of new sensors , with possible applications in counter-terrorism . we are constantly looking at new ways of demonstrating and improving the remarkable properties of graphene , ' geim said . countless universities around the world are also engaged in the same task . the u.s. 's massachusetts institute of technology in boston , have recently discovered that graphene exhibits a novel reaction to light , ' which they say could improve night-vision systems and possibly provide a new approach to solar power . excitement is building in the consumer electronics market too , as phone and computer manufacturers look to capitalize on graphene 's uniqueness as a transparent conductor . the vision is to have electronic devices which can be integrated with your body or clothing , or computers which can be bent or rolled up and put away , ' said professor andrea ferrari , professor of nanotechnology at the uk 's university of cambridge . researchers at sungkyunkwan university in seoul , south korea have already demonstrated a flexible touchscreen , he says . and rumors were rife in cyberspace recently that south korean electronics company , samsung were going to release a flexible smartphone , called the galaxy skin ' in 2012 . it turned out to be untrue , but bendable phones , computers and televisions may not be far off , says ferrari . it may well be that in the next three or four years , if everything goes well , we may see some transparent and flexible devices made from graphene come to the market . ' | russian physicists who discovered graphene awarded nobel physics prize in 2010 |
polish <tsp> islamabad , pakistan ( cnn ) -- polish authorities in pakistan say they are monitoring local reports that taliban militants have executed a kidnapped polish engineer . pakistani taliban militants offer prayers in mamouzai area of orakzai agency in november . piotr stancza was kidnapped september 28 from the city of attock in punjab province . stancza had been based there for a polish survey company searching for natural gas . local reports and tv station dawn news reported stancza 's execution saturday . polish embassy spokesman peter adams said his offices were aware of local media reports but were waiting to hear officially from pakistani authorities . he said all efforts had been made by polish authorities to pressure the pakistani government to do whatever it could to secure stancza 's release . from the polish side , we did whatever we could , pressuring the pakistani government on the presidential and prime minister level , ' adams said . problem was , this was solely pakistan 's responsibility . demands were only towards [ the ] pakistan government . ' adams said there had been no demands for ransom . the taliban had demanded the release of taliban prisoners being held by the government and a pullout of government security forces from the tribal areas . although there were assurances that the pakistani government was doing everything it could and that stancza would be freed soon , adams said it was never clear what the government was actually doing to secure his release . we are waiting for confirmation and waiting for any answer [ about ] how this happened and why did this happen , ' adams said . a spokesman for pakistan 's interior ministry said that the reports of stancza 's death have yet to be confirmed and that the case of his kidnapping was a high priority for the government . shahid ullah baig said the government had been working hard to retrieve stancza unharmed but did not give details . the pakistan government is doing its level best to secure his release , ' he said , adding , human life is more important to us than anything else . ' kidnappings and attacks against foreigners have risen sharply in recent months throughout the country . most recently , an american working for the united nations was kidnapped in quetta , and peshawar has been the scene of various attacks against foreign diplomats and journalists . | polish authorities in pakistan checking local reports |
jean <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a u.s. navy warship and helicopters are trailing a boat believed to be the one that was hijacked by somali pirates over the weekend , a senior military source with knowledge of the operation told cnn . four americans were manning the boat . pirates boarded the american yacht off the coast of oman last friday , three days after the boat 's owners split off from the relative safety of a sailing group traversing a dangerous section of the indian ocean , according to the group , the blue water rally . owners jean and scott adam and two others , phyllis macay and bob riggle , were aboard the yacht , the s/v quest . u.s. officials have made no further comment on the situation since rear adm. charles gaouette , deputy commander of the u.s. navy 's fifth fleet , said saturday that the government is evaluating its options . the adams are experienced boaters , having started a world tour in 2004 , and were very much conscious of the threat from pirates , said a friend of the adams , fellow boater scott stolnitz . scott adam said several weeks ago that he was concerned about pirate activity in the area , which he had never visited before , stolnitz said . but he said adam was determined to traverse the world himself as opposed to shipping the boat -- as some other yacht owners have done . | jean and adam scott are experienced boaters |
melbourne <tsp> wall street is more than 10,000 miles away from melbourne , but 24-year-old australian alex gard felt a kinship to the outrage expressed on the streets of manhattan . it 's great that people are finally standing up against the privileged few people who want to rule together , ' gard said . i wanted to stand together and say , ` enough is enough'. ' gard is one of the organizers of occupy melbourne , ' a group that started on facebook that now has more than 2,000 members with plans to protest on october 15 in city square . similar calls have sprung up around australia : occupy brisbane , ' occupy perth , ' and occupy sydney . ' we are inspired by what 's happening on wall street and loosely liaising with each other , but it 's not organized in any central way , ' said gard , who works as a mechanic on cargo ships . gard and the planned australian spin-offs of occupy wall street ' are not alone . there are facebook calls for a global demonstration on october 15 in cities in more than 25 countries stretching from hong kong to buenos aires , dublin to madrid . some protest pages show only a few dozen will attend ; others have thousands . protest pages in spain and italy -- two countries hard hit by the financial crisis and subsequent european union debt woes -- have the largest facebook attendees so far , with 42,410 and 20,568 , respectively . occupy wall street ' began on september 17 and is now spreading to cities across the u.s . the demonstrations , inspired by the arab spring protest movement , are against economic inequality and power vested in the top 1 % income earners . its rallying cry , we are the 99 percent , ' is now being picked up by groups around the globe . occupy the london stock exchange ' -- referring to europe 's largest bourse and the world 's fourth largest exchange outside of new york and tokyo -- has more than 6,000 followers . it 's time that we too say , enough is enough . bankers have got off scot-free whilst the people of this country are being punished for a crisis they did not create , ' said the group 's facebook invite page . the event , which so far has 2,300 signed up as attending , plans to occupy paternoster square from 4 p.m. october 15 to december 12 . what we have in common is that we are the other 99 % , that we want people over profit , that we are making our voices heard against greed and corruption and for a democratic and just society , ' london organizer james alexander fancourt told the telegraph newspaper . and we are doing that in a non-violent and peaceful way . ' in melbourne , some demonstrators are planning to camp for days , maybe weeks , ' gard said . while the australian economy -- driven by strong commodity sales of iron ore and coal -- escaped the brunt of the 2008 financial crisis , gard said many australians do n't feel they 're sharing in the wealth . look , australia 's not the worst place in the world , but we 're seeing banks recording record profits , rental has been crazy , housing prices are going up and up , ' gar said . indigenous people are being moved off their own land for the sake of mining companies ... everything is building up to a boiling point . ' | melbourne organizer : we are inspired by what 's happening on wall street ' |
wall street <tsp> wall street is more than 10,000 miles away from melbourne , but 24-year-old australian alex gard felt a kinship to the outrage expressed on the streets of manhattan . it 's great that people are finally standing up against the privileged few people who want to rule together , ' gard said . i wanted to stand together and say , ` enough is enough'. ' gard is one of the organizers of occupy melbourne , ' a group that started on facebook that now has more than 2,000 members with plans to protest on october 15 in city square . similar calls have sprung up around australia : occupy brisbane , ' occupy perth , ' and occupy sydney . ' we are inspired by what 's happening on wall street and loosely liaising with each other , but it 's not organized in any central way , ' said gard , who works as a mechanic on cargo ships . gard and the planned australian spin-offs of occupy wall street ' are not alone . there are facebook calls for a global demonstration on october 15 in cities in more than 25 countries stretching from hong kong to buenos aires , dublin to madrid . some protest pages show only a few dozen will attend ; others have thousands . protest pages in spain and italy -- two countries hard hit by the financial crisis and subsequent european union debt woes -- have the largest facebook attendees so far , with 42,410 and 20,568 , respectively . occupy wall street ' began on september 17 and is now spreading to cities across the u.s . the demonstrations , inspired by the arab spring protest movement , are against economic inequality and power vested in the top 1 % income earners . its rallying cry , we are the 99 percent , ' is now being picked up by groups around the globe . occupy the london stock exchange ' -- referring to europe 's largest bourse and the world 's fourth largest exchange outside of new york and tokyo -- has more than 6,000 followers . it 's time that we too say , enough is enough . bankers have got off scot-free whilst the people of this country are being punished for a crisis they did not create , ' said the group 's facebook invite page . the event , which so far has 2,300 signed up as attending , plans to occupy paternoster square from 4 p.m. october 15 to december 12 . what we have in common is that we are the other 99 % , that we want people over profit , that we are making our voices heard against greed and corruption and for a democratic and just society , ' london organizer james alexander fancourt told the telegraph newspaper . and we are doing that in a non-violent and peaceful way . ' in melbourne , some demonstrators are planning to camp for days , maybe weeks , ' gard said . while the australian economy -- driven by strong commodity sales of iron ore and coal -- escaped the brunt of the 2008 financial crisis , gard said many australians do n't feel they 're sharing in the wealth . look , australia 's not the worst place in the world , but we 're seeing banks recording record profits , rental has been crazy , housing prices are going up and up , ' gar said . indigenous people are being moved off their own land for the sake of mining companies ... everything is building up to a boiling point . ' | facebook calls for a global occupy ' protest on october 15 similar to the wall street protests |
wall street <tsp> wall street is more than 10,000 miles away from melbourne , but 24-year-old australian alex gard felt a kinship to the outrage expressed on the streets of manhattan . it 's great that people are finally standing up against the privileged few people who want to rule together , ' gard said . i wanted to stand together and say , ` enough is enough'. ' gard is one of the organizers of occupy melbourne , ' a group that started on facebook that now has more than 2,000 members with plans to protest on october 15 in city square . similar calls have sprung up around australia : occupy brisbane , ' occupy perth , ' and occupy sydney . ' we are inspired by what 's happening on wall street and loosely liaising with each other , but it 's not organized in any central way , ' said gard , who works as a mechanic on cargo ships . gard and the planned australian spin-offs of occupy wall street ' are not alone . there are facebook calls for a global demonstration on october 15 in cities in more than 25 countries stretching from hong kong to buenos aires , dublin to madrid . some protest pages show only a few dozen will attend ; others have thousands . protest pages in spain and italy -- two countries hard hit by the financial crisis and subsequent european union debt woes -- have the largest facebook attendees so far , with 42,410 and 20,568 , respectively . occupy wall street ' began on september 17 and is now spreading to cities across the u.s . the demonstrations , inspired by the arab spring protest movement , are against economic inequality and power vested in the top 1 % income earners . its rallying cry , we are the 99 percent , ' is now being picked up by groups around the globe . occupy the london stock exchange ' -- referring to europe 's largest bourse and the world 's fourth largest exchange outside of new york and tokyo -- has more than 6,000 followers . it 's time that we too say , enough is enough . bankers have got off scot-free whilst the people of this country are being punished for a crisis they did not create , ' said the group 's facebook invite page . the event , which so far has 2,300 signed up as attending , plans to occupy paternoster square from 4 p.m. october 15 to december 12 . what we have in common is that we are the other 99 % , that we want people over profit , that we are making our voices heard against greed and corruption and for a democratic and just society , ' london organizer james alexander fancourt told the telegraph newspaper . and we are doing that in a non-violent and peaceful way . ' in melbourne , some demonstrators are planning to camp for days , maybe weeks , ' gard said . while the australian economy -- driven by strong commodity sales of iron ore and coal -- escaped the brunt of the 2008 financial crisis , gard said many australians do n't feel they 're sharing in the wealth . look , australia 's not the worst place in the world , but we 're seeing banks recording record profits , rental has been crazy , housing prices are going up and up , ' gar said . indigenous people are being moved off their own land for the sake of mining companies ... everything is building up to a boiling point . ' | melbourne organizer : we are inspired by what 's happening on wall street ' |
hong kong <tsp> wall street is more than 10,000 miles away from melbourne , but 24-year-old australian alex gard felt a kinship to the outrage expressed on the streets of manhattan . it 's great that people are finally standing up against the privileged few people who want to rule together , ' gard said . i wanted to stand together and say , ` enough is enough'. ' gard is one of the organizers of occupy melbourne , ' a group that started on facebook that now has more than 2,000 members with plans to protest on october 15 in city square . similar calls have sprung up around australia : occupy brisbane , ' occupy perth , ' and occupy sydney . ' we are inspired by what 's happening on wall street and loosely liaising with each other , but it 's not organized in any central way , ' said gard , who works as a mechanic on cargo ships . gard and the planned australian spin-offs of occupy wall street ' are not alone . there are facebook calls for a global demonstration on october 15 in cities in more than 25 countries stretching from hong kong to buenos aires , dublin to madrid . some protest pages show only a few dozen will attend ; others have thousands . protest pages in spain and italy -- two countries hard hit by the financial crisis and subsequent european union debt woes -- have the largest facebook attendees so far , with 42,410 and 20,568 , respectively . occupy wall street ' began on september 17 and is now spreading to cities across the u.s . the demonstrations , inspired by the arab spring protest movement , are against economic inequality and power vested in the top 1 % income earners . its rallying cry , we are the 99 percent , ' is now being picked up by groups around the globe . occupy the london stock exchange ' -- referring to europe 's largest bourse and the world 's fourth largest exchange outside of new york and tokyo -- has more than 6,000 followers . it 's time that we too say , enough is enough . bankers have got off scot-free whilst the people of this country are being punished for a crisis they did not create , ' said the group 's facebook invite page . the event , which so far has 2,300 signed up as attending , plans to occupy paternoster square from 4 p.m. october 15 to december 12 . what we have in common is that we are the other 99 % , that we want people over profit , that we are making our voices heard against greed and corruption and for a democratic and just society , ' london organizer james alexander fancourt told the telegraph newspaper . and we are doing that in a non-violent and peaceful way . ' in melbourne , some demonstrators are planning to camp for days , maybe weeks , ' gard said . while the australian economy -- driven by strong commodity sales of iron ore and coal -- escaped the brunt of the 2008 financial crisis , gard said many australians do n't feel they 're sharing in the wealth . look , australia 's not the worst place in the world , but we 're seeing banks recording record profits , rental has been crazy , housing prices are going up and up , ' gar said . indigenous people are being moved off their own land for the sake of mining companies ... everything is building up to a boiling point . ' | demonstrations in more than 25 countries from ireland to italy , hong kong to chile |
aragon <tsp> madrid , spain ( cnn ) -- a firefighter who was trapped in a fast-moving forest fire in eastern spain tuesday and hospitalized with severe burns , died friday near barcelona , the catalan regional government said on its web site . spain is plagued by forest fires every summer , when dry weather sets in along with high temperatures . he was the sixth firefighter this week to die from forest fires raging around spain . the 31-year-old man was with a group of firefighters battling a forest fire in horta de sant joan in eastern tarragona province tuesday , when winds suddenly shifted , trapping them . four firefighters in the group were killed immediately , authorities said , while several others were injured . the 31-year-old firefighter , who worked for the regional catalan government , had burns on more than 50 percent of his body . the horta de sant joan fire was brought under control midday friday , the catalan government said , after burning 1,020 hectares , or 2,520 acres . on thursday , a 44-year-old firefighter died while driving a fire truck to fight a forest fire in eastern teruel province , the regional aragon government said on its web site . the aragon region borders the catalan region . some 7,000 hectares ( 17,300 acres ) have already burned in teruel province and friday there were still various fronts to the fire , cnn partner station cnn+ reported , from the scene . aircraft , including planes and helicopters , were being used to fight the fires in the aragon region , along with hundreds of firefighters in the hilly terrain , much of it with difficult access . on thursday , more than 800 spanish troops were also fighting numerous forest fires across spain , the environment ministry said . spanish media reported that a fire in the town of mojacar , in southern almeria province , forced the thursday night evacuation of 3,000 people . spain is plagued by forest and brush fires every summer , when extremely dry weather sets in along with high temperatures . in 2005 , 11 people were killed when they were trapped by a fast-moving fire in guadalajara province , east of madrid . cnn 's al goodman contributed to this report . | aircraft being used in aragon and catalonia to battle the fires |
kingston <tsp> ( cnn ) -- singer sean kingston has been moved from the trauma center of a miami hospital to its intensive-care unit a day after he and a female passenger were injured in a jet ski accident , his publicist said monday . sean kingston is now stabilized , ' said joe carozza , kingston 's publicist at epic records , in a statement . hip-hop singer trav , who features kingston in his latest song , said monday kingston is doing well . he just opened his eyes this morning . ' jorge pino , spokesman for the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission , said the watercraft apparently crashed when it went under a small bridge about 6 p.m . they were taken to jackson-ryder trauma center at jackson memorial hospital in miami . carozza said sunday night in a statement that the 21-year-old musician was in an accident . ' trav told cnn sunday night in an e-mail he visited kingston at the hospital and he is good in stable condition . ' earlier sunday , kingston posted the following message on his twitter account , which has more than 1.5 million followers : ' south beach ... # nicee ... bout to get fresh and cause that movie ! ! ... ' the miami-born artist changed his name from kisean anderson to kingston to reflect his jamaican heritage . he shot to fame in 2007 when his debut song beautiful girls ' became a no . 1 hit in the united states . cnn 's alan duke contributed to this report . | florida agency : kingston 's jet ski apparently crashed when it went under a bridge |
kingston <tsp> ( cnn ) -- singer sean kingston has been moved from the trauma center of a miami hospital to its intensive-care unit a day after he and a female passenger were injured in a jet ski accident , his publicist said monday . sean kingston is now stabilized , ' said joe carozza , kingston 's publicist at epic records , in a statement . hip-hop singer trav , who features kingston in his latest song , said monday kingston is doing well . he just opened his eyes this morning . ' jorge pino , spokesman for the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission , said the watercraft apparently crashed when it went under a small bridge about 6 p.m . they were taken to jackson-ryder trauma center at jackson memorial hospital in miami . carozza said sunday night in a statement that the 21-year-old musician was in an accident . ' trav told cnn sunday night in an e-mail he visited kingston at the hospital and he is good in stable condition . ' earlier sunday , kingston posted the following message on his twitter account , which has more than 1.5 million followers : ' south beach ... # nicee ... bout to get fresh and cause that movie ! ! ... ' the miami-born artist changed his name from kisean anderson to kingston to reflect his jamaican heritage . he shot to fame in 2007 when his debut song beautiful girls ' became a no . 1 hit in the united states . cnn 's alan duke contributed to this report . | new : hip-hop singer trav says kingston just opened his eyes this morning ' |
kingston <tsp> ( cnn ) -- singer sean kingston has been moved from the trauma center of a miami hospital to its intensive-care unit a day after he and a female passenger were injured in a jet ski accident , his publicist said monday . sean kingston is now stabilized , ' said joe carozza , kingston 's publicist at epic records , in a statement . hip-hop singer trav , who features kingston in his latest song , said monday kingston is doing well . he just opened his eyes this morning . ' jorge pino , spokesman for the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission , said the watercraft apparently crashed when it went under a small bridge about 6 p.m . they were taken to jackson-ryder trauma center at jackson memorial hospital in miami . carozza said sunday night in a statement that the 21-year-old musician was in an accident . ' trav told cnn sunday night in an e-mail he visited kingston at the hospital and he is good in stable condition . ' earlier sunday , kingston posted the following message on his twitter account , which has more than 1.5 million followers : ' south beach ... # nicee ... bout to get fresh and cause that movie ! ! ... ' the miami-born artist changed his name from kisean anderson to kingston to reflect his jamaican heritage . he shot to fame in 2007 when his debut song beautiful girls ' became a no . 1 hit in the united states . cnn 's alan duke contributed to this report . | sean kingston moved to icu |
kingston <tsp> ( cnn ) -- singer sean kingston has been moved from the trauma center of a miami hospital to its intensive-care unit a day after he and a female passenger were injured in a jet ski accident , his publicist said monday . sean kingston is now stabilized , ' said joe carozza , kingston 's publicist at epic records , in a statement . hip-hop singer trav , who features kingston in his latest song , said monday kingston is doing well . he just opened his eyes this morning . ' jorge pino , spokesman for the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission , said the watercraft apparently crashed when it went under a small bridge about 6 p.m . they were taken to jackson-ryder trauma center at jackson memorial hospital in miami . carozza said sunday night in a statement that the 21-year-old musician was in an accident . ' trav told cnn sunday night in an e-mail he visited kingston at the hospital and he is good in stable condition . ' earlier sunday , kingston posted the following message on his twitter account , which has more than 1.5 million followers : ' south beach ... # nicee ... bout to get fresh and cause that movie ! ! ... ' the miami-born artist changed his name from kisean anderson to kingston to reflect his jamaican heritage . he shot to fame in 2007 when his debut song beautiful girls ' became a no . 1 hit in the united states . cnn 's alan duke contributed to this report . | his publicist says kingston has stabilized |
fiorentina <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a seventh minute goal from brazilian teenager alexander pato proved enough to give ac milan a 1-0 home victory over fiorentina in a match totally dominated by manchester city 's $ 150 million bid for playmaker kaka this week . pato ( right ) and david beckham celebrate milan 's only goal at the san siro on saturday evening . the goal was created by david beckham who beat two defenders to a loose ball . he poked it back to marek jankulovski who played in pato inside the penalty area . there still appeared no danger to the fiorentina goal , but pato hit a stunning strike from the left that went in off the far post . fiorentina should have equalized on 66 minutes when juan vargas got to the byline and crossed to mario santana but the argentine put his shot too close to goalkeeper christian abbiati who managed to save . the result leaves milan in third place on 37 points , six points behind leaders and city rivals inter , who have a game in hand . jose mourinho 's side travel to atalanta on sunday . jankulovski collected a late red card for timewasting , but milan held on to secure the three points . meanwhile , milan supporters made their opposition to the kaka bid , and his possible departure , perfectly clear throughout the match -- unveiling a host of banners and singing songs pleading with the brazilian to stay at the san siro . reggina remain deep in relegation trouble after suffering a 1-0 defeat at the hands of siena . mario frick 's goal 15 minutes from time was enough to give the bianconeri three points which sees them leapfrog sampdoria and move up to the relative comfort of 14th spot . siena in contrast , stay second from bottom and could slip to the foot of the serie a standings if chievo beat napoli on sunday . | alexander pato scores seventh minute goal as ac milan defeat fiorentina 1-0 |
commission <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- its boss the butt of late-night jokes and its conduct the target of president barack obama 's ire , bp went into a june meeting at the white house with its future at stake . the confidence of the markets had been rattled , ' former bp ceo tony hayward said in his first interview since he resigned , indicating how close the company was to collapse . oil was still flowing from its well in the gulf of mexico and the company was being hit financially on all sides , with its stock price down and demands increasing for it to suspend dividend payments . eleven lives had been lost on the deepwater horizon rig and gulf coast residents were feeling the punch of the disaster . these were frightening days , ' current boss bob dudley told the bbc , which aired bp : $ 30 billion blowout ' on tuesday . it was a very , very tense period . ' bp emerged from the white house with an agreement to spend $ 20 billion in reparations over four years and for politicians to tone down the anti-bp rhetoric . hayward told the bbc the company was not prepared ' for the fallout from the spill and that he understood why he was demonized and vilified ' by the american public . it is very difficult to hate a company , ' said hayward , conceding bp contingency plans were inadequate . it 's much easier to hate an individual . ' hayward made a series of ill-advised remarks during the crisis , including , i would like my life back . ' u.s. politicians and officials castigated him and occasionally referred to the company as british petroleum ' rather than as bp , ' underscoring that a foreign-based company was at fault for the disaster . i do n't feel like i 've been made a scapegoat , i recognized the realities of the world we live in , ' hayward told the bbc . in some senses it comes with the patch and you simply have to take the rough with the smooth . ' hayward said the company can restore the environment and jobs , but not the lives of those who died on the deepwater horizon . i was and remain devastated , he said . i feel a real accountability for that . ' the bbc program was aired on the second day of u.s. hearings about the gulf oil spill . one bad decision after another , failed tests and other shortfalls show that the three companies involved in the disaster need to be overhauled , the co-chairman of the presidential commission investigating the incident said . bp , halliburton , and transocean are major respected companies operating throughout the gulf , ' said william reilly , former administrator of the environmental protection agency , and the evidence is that they are in need of top-to-bottom reform . ' referencing his own earlier remarks about culture of complacency , ' reilly said , all three companies we heard from displayed it , ' reilly said . on monday , the commission reported that workers aboard the deepwater horizon were pushing to complete the well , but no conscious decision ' to cut corners on safety had been discovered . presentations and examinations yesterday uncovered a suite of bad decisions , ' reilly said . commission co-chairman bob graham , a former u.s. senator from florida , cited a culture that failed to ensure safety . leaders did not take serious risk seriously enough , did not identify risk that proved to be fatal , ' graham said tuesday . tuesday 's hearing focused on regulations and well-drilling protocols . the disaster began april 20 with an explosion aboard the deepwater horizon drill rig , which was completing the well for bp at the time of the blast . the 11 killed all died in the blast and fire , which raged for two days before the rig sank , rupturing the well a mile below . transocean , the rig 's owner , halliburton , the cement contractor , and bp have pointed fingers at each other since the rig sank . bp was responsible for capping the ruptured well it owned and cleaning up the more than 200 million gallons of oil that spilled . the well was sealed temporarily in mid-july and capped permanently on september 19 . there seemed to be a compulsion to get this rig completed in that april 19 , april 20 time period , ' graham said monday . reilly also cited a rush to completion ' and called bp and its partners laggards ' in following best practices for drilling . tuesday 's testimony included discussion on bp 's plan to temporarily cap the well before another rig would move in to start collecting oil . charlie williams , well engineering scientist , said his company uses at least three plugs during such a process , as compared to bp 's one . the director of a petroleum research laboratory at louisiana state university testified that better training and drills could prepare rig workers for disasters . i definitely think an increase in training should be considered , particularly with a set of disaster scenarios , if you will , ' said darryl bourgoyne . i think it would probably be much more effective if [ training ] drills were regularly conducted along these lines on the rigs that were doing the operations with the crews . ' the commission also heard from exxonmobil about its safety programs . its executive said the company learned some lessons from the 1989 exxon valdez disaster in alaska and other situations . exxonmobil 's goal is not simply to have employees comply with safety procedures . a culture of compliance alone can lead to complacency , ' said rex tillerson , chairman and chief executive officer . we seek to go beyond compliance , to create a culture in which employees are not only meeting the safety procedures , but they are challenging them so they can be improved where needed . ' bp and halliburton have drawn criticism about flaws in cement that was poured to reinforce the well . the companies involved each had data , ' commission chief engineer richard sears testified tuesday . and if data had been shared differently and if operations had been carried out differently , i believe this disaster could have been prevented . ' cnn 's vivian kuo contributed to this report . | commission co-chairman says companies need reforms |
rnc <tsp> ( cnn ) -- we moved to suburban akron in january 2003 , just months before lebron james graduated from st. vincent-st. mary high school and was drafted by the cleveland cavaliers . my teenage sons were 3 and 5 years old when we became cavaliers season ticket holders during james'rookie year . we were faithful cavs regulars for eight seasons . four years ago , my son , now 16 , was devastated when james took his talents to miami . he still has a cavaliers'james fathead poster in his room . james'house is within walking distance to ours . our sons went to the same school . my 13-year-old is a bit older , but would chat with and high-five james'son , lebron jr. james sr. played basketball with the middle school boys when the school opened a new gym . he talked to the children in the halls , often urging them to do well in school . we 'd see him shopping at target or best buy , but we would give him his space . you see , my sons like james . they grew up with james . he 's their neighbor . and now he 's home . friday 's announcement that james is returning to northeast ohio capped off a spectacular week of cleveland in the national spotlight . on monday , thanks to the diligence of hardworking local organizers , the republican national committee announced its 2016 convention would be hosted in cleveland . the city is experiencing a renaissance and the world is taking note , even if national media is having a hard time embracing it . for those who had n't noticed , things are indeed hot in cleveland . a new convention center recently opened , hotels are being built , businesses are moving in , the biotech industry is thriving . the cleveland browns have a hopeful new star and the prodigal son is coming home . the sun has never shined as bright in cleveland as it did friday . as a crowd gathered friday afternoon in front of quicken loans arena , home of the cleveland cavaliers and host of the rnc 's 2016 convention , residents celebrated . stuff like this does n't happen to cleveland , ' several fans said , repeatedly . clevelanders have endured the departure of its athletic stars , the failure to win championships of its teams and the mockery that has come from political and sports analysts about why a political convention or the nba 's biggest star would go to cleveland . yes , cleveland was heartbroken when james announced his decision to go to miami . but the city 's wrath was never as extreme as the national media played it . everyone was n't intoxicated and burning jerseys as the ongoing loop on sports television suggested . we were , however , a city scorned . many , if not most , understood the decision but hated the way it was delivered -- especially the people of akron . but even then , kids bought the heat jerseys or james sneakers and followed @ kingjames religiously on twitter . some men , young and old , even bought plane tickets to watch james play in miami . still , james'departure stung . it hurt . it was personal . he had loyalty tattooed on his chest . for clevelanders , that was supposed to mean something . months later , i wrote a personal letter to james that i never mailed . in it , i told him that the choice was his to make but his departure method had made me cringe . the mother in me wished he had gone to the'q to shake the hands of the security guards , custodial staff and the kitchen staff and to look in the eyes of cavaliers leadership while thanking them for unwavering support . i wanted to tell him how much he had bruised our local children . i wanted him to set a better example . i wanted him to know there were still boys in copley , bath and akron who were looking up to him . but today is a new day . cleveland is standing proud and tall . it 's distinguished by its passion , a passion that outsiders do n't always understand and those of us who live here do n't always appreciate . no other city has greater cheerleaders or bigger fans . as political analysts second-guessed this week 's rnc choice rather than the selection of dallas and as sports analysts complained about having to spend more time working in cleveland rather than sipping mojitos on south beach , the people who live here have a deeply affectionate relationship with the city . as rachel talton , a local business owner tweeted , it 's been an amazing week for our beloved cleveland . rnc and lebron . so exciting . ' what the world is witnessing is true civic pride . the kind of pride that comes when you believe you 've worked hard and someone else has finally noticed . ours is pride that comes from feeling like someone has finally stood up for you . on friday , lebron james stood up for cleveland , for akron , for northeast ohio . i never mailed my letter to mr. james , but i think he has long since gotten the message . welcome home lebron . join us on facebook.com/cnnopinion . | coupled with the rnc announcement , this was a good week for cleveland |
james <tsp> ( cnn ) -- we moved to suburban akron in january 2003 , just months before lebron james graduated from st. vincent-st. mary high school and was drafted by the cleveland cavaliers . my teenage sons were 3 and 5 years old when we became cavaliers season ticket holders during james'rookie year . we were faithful cavs regulars for eight seasons . four years ago , my son , now 16 , was devastated when james took his talents to miami . he still has a cavaliers'james fathead poster in his room . james'house is within walking distance to ours . our sons went to the same school . my 13-year-old is a bit older , but would chat with and high-five james'son , lebron jr. james sr. played basketball with the middle school boys when the school opened a new gym . he talked to the children in the halls , often urging them to do well in school . we 'd see him shopping at target or best buy , but we would give him his space . you see , my sons like james . they grew up with james . he 's their neighbor . and now he 's home . friday 's announcement that james is returning to northeast ohio capped off a spectacular week of cleveland in the national spotlight . on monday , thanks to the diligence of hardworking local organizers , the republican national committee announced its 2016 convention would be hosted in cleveland . the city is experiencing a renaissance and the world is taking note , even if national media is having a hard time embracing it . for those who had n't noticed , things are indeed hot in cleveland . a new convention center recently opened , hotels are being built , businesses are moving in , the biotech industry is thriving . the cleveland browns have a hopeful new star and the prodigal son is coming home . the sun has never shined as bright in cleveland as it did friday . as a crowd gathered friday afternoon in front of quicken loans arena , home of the cleveland cavaliers and host of the rnc 's 2016 convention , residents celebrated . stuff like this does n't happen to cleveland , ' several fans said , repeatedly . clevelanders have endured the departure of its athletic stars , the failure to win championships of its teams and the mockery that has come from political and sports analysts about why a political convention or the nba 's biggest star would go to cleveland . yes , cleveland was heartbroken when james announced his decision to go to miami . but the city 's wrath was never as extreme as the national media played it . everyone was n't intoxicated and burning jerseys as the ongoing loop on sports television suggested . we were , however , a city scorned . many , if not most , understood the decision but hated the way it was delivered -- especially the people of akron . but even then , kids bought the heat jerseys or james sneakers and followed @ kingjames religiously on twitter . some men , young and old , even bought plane tickets to watch james play in miami . still , james'departure stung . it hurt . it was personal . he had loyalty tattooed on his chest . for clevelanders , that was supposed to mean something . months later , i wrote a personal letter to james that i never mailed . in it , i told him that the choice was his to make but his departure method had made me cringe . the mother in me wished he had gone to the'q to shake the hands of the security guards , custodial staff and the kitchen staff and to look in the eyes of cavaliers leadership while thanking them for unwavering support . i wanted to tell him how much he had bruised our local children . i wanted him to set a better example . i wanted him to know there were still boys in copley , bath and akron who were looking up to him . but today is a new day . cleveland is standing proud and tall . it 's distinguished by its passion , a passion that outsiders do n't always understand and those of us who live here do n't always appreciate . no other city has greater cheerleaders or bigger fans . as political analysts second-guessed this week 's rnc choice rather than the selection of dallas and as sports analysts complained about having to spend more time working in cleveland rather than sipping mojitos on south beach , the people who live here have a deeply affectionate relationship with the city . as rachel talton , a local business owner tweeted , it 's been an amazing week for our beloved cleveland . rnc and lebron . so exciting . ' what the world is witnessing is true civic pride . the kind of pride that comes when you believe you 've worked hard and someone else has finally noticed . ours is pride that comes from feeling like someone has finally stood up for you . on friday , lebron james stood up for cleveland , for akron , for northeast ohio . i never mailed my letter to mr. james , but i think he has long since gotten the message . welcome home lebron . join us on facebook.com/cnnopinion . | she lives blocks from james'home and her sons went to the same school |
james <tsp> ( cnn ) -- we moved to suburban akron in january 2003 , just months before lebron james graduated from st. vincent-st. mary high school and was drafted by the cleveland cavaliers . my teenage sons were 3 and 5 years old when we became cavaliers season ticket holders during james'rookie year . we were faithful cavs regulars for eight seasons . four years ago , my son , now 16 , was devastated when james took his talents to miami . he still has a cavaliers'james fathead poster in his room . james'house is within walking distance to ours . our sons went to the same school . my 13-year-old is a bit older , but would chat with and high-five james'son , lebron jr. james sr. played basketball with the middle school boys when the school opened a new gym . he talked to the children in the halls , often urging them to do well in school . we 'd see him shopping at target or best buy , but we would give him his space . you see , my sons like james . they grew up with james . he 's their neighbor . and now he 's home . friday 's announcement that james is returning to northeast ohio capped off a spectacular week of cleveland in the national spotlight . on monday , thanks to the diligence of hardworking local organizers , the republican national committee announced its 2016 convention would be hosted in cleveland . the city is experiencing a renaissance and the world is taking note , even if national media is having a hard time embracing it . for those who had n't noticed , things are indeed hot in cleveland . a new convention center recently opened , hotels are being built , businesses are moving in , the biotech industry is thriving . the cleveland browns have a hopeful new star and the prodigal son is coming home . the sun has never shined as bright in cleveland as it did friday . as a crowd gathered friday afternoon in front of quicken loans arena , home of the cleveland cavaliers and host of the rnc 's 2016 convention , residents celebrated . stuff like this does n't happen to cleveland , ' several fans said , repeatedly . clevelanders have endured the departure of its athletic stars , the failure to win championships of its teams and the mockery that has come from political and sports analysts about why a political convention or the nba 's biggest star would go to cleveland . yes , cleveland was heartbroken when james announced his decision to go to miami . but the city 's wrath was never as extreme as the national media played it . everyone was n't intoxicated and burning jerseys as the ongoing loop on sports television suggested . we were , however , a city scorned . many , if not most , understood the decision but hated the way it was delivered -- especially the people of akron . but even then , kids bought the heat jerseys or james sneakers and followed @ kingjames religiously on twitter . some men , young and old , even bought plane tickets to watch james play in miami . still , james'departure stung . it hurt . it was personal . he had loyalty tattooed on his chest . for clevelanders , that was supposed to mean something . months later , i wrote a personal letter to james that i never mailed . in it , i told him that the choice was his to make but his departure method had made me cringe . the mother in me wished he had gone to the'q to shake the hands of the security guards , custodial staff and the kitchen staff and to look in the eyes of cavaliers leadership while thanking them for unwavering support . i wanted to tell him how much he had bruised our local children . i wanted him to set a better example . i wanted him to know there were still boys in copley , bath and akron who were looking up to him . but today is a new day . cleveland is standing proud and tall . it 's distinguished by its passion , a passion that outsiders do n't always understand and those of us who live here do n't always appreciate . no other city has greater cheerleaders or bigger fans . as political analysts second-guessed this week 's rnc choice rather than the selection of dallas and as sports analysts complained about having to spend more time working in cleveland rather than sipping mojitos on south beach , the people who live here have a deeply affectionate relationship with the city . as rachel talton , a local business owner tweeted , it 's been an amazing week for our beloved cleveland . rnc and lebron . so exciting . ' what the world is witnessing is true civic pride . the kind of pride that comes when you believe you 've worked hard and someone else has finally noticed . ours is pride that comes from feeling like someone has finally stood up for you . on friday , lebron james stood up for cleveland , for akron , for northeast ohio . i never mailed my letter to mr. james , but i think he has long since gotten the message . welcome home lebron . join us on facebook.com/cnnopinion . | debra adams simmons says lebron james returning is a gift to the region |
cnn <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the formula one teams association ( fota ) has written to motorsport 's governing body about the 2011 race calendar amidst a backdrop of confusion over the re-instated bahrain grand prix . fota confirmed to cnn they had sent a letter to the international automobile federation ( fia ) and the bahrain international circuit discussing the season 's schedule , after the recent decision to stage the bahrain race in october . the original event was canceled in march due to ongoing civil unrest in the gulf kingdom but max mosley , former head of the fia , told cnn tuesday that he would be astonished ' if the grand prix went ahead . mosley said any change to the race calendar would have to be unanimously supported by all 12 f1 teams -- something he thought was highly unlikely . mosley : bahrain grand prix will not go ahead formula one supremo bernie ecclestone also admitted to cnn in monaco that he was unsure whether the race would go ahead . when asked if f1 could take a stand against the violence in the country he said : i think it would be difficult to do that , but i think we 'd have to -- sort of -- do something that would keep everybody peaceful . ' red bull driver mark webber criticized the fia 's decision saying on his personal web site : i 'll be highly surprised if the bahrain grand prix goes ahead this year . ' in a statement , fota confirmed to cnn : the teams have discussed the 2011 calendar within fota and have expressed their views privately in a letter to the fia , fom ( formula one management ) and the bahrain international circuit . ' canada is the next stop on the schedule for formula one , as they prepare for this weekend 's montreal grand prix , where questions over the bahrain race will remain high on the agenda . the uk press association reported tuesday that the fota letter demanded the fia abandon plans to return to bahrain due to logistical and safety concerns . ' they also claimed the plan to switch the indian grand prix to the end of the season , in december , in order to accommodate the bahrain race was unbearable to our staff . ' on tuesday , mosley told cnn there was little chance of the bahrain gp going ahead and claimed there would be no serious damage done to the sport 's reputation if the fia were to swiftly cancel plans to return . he said : when you 're going to change something in the middle of the season , like the proposal to move the indian race for example , that needs the unanimous agreement of all the teams . i do n't think there 's the slightest chance of that actually being given . the teams have complete power in this particular case because although the governing body can cancel an event for reason of force majeure - as happened in the case of bahrain -- when you want to put an event on or move an event , that 's a change to the conditions under which the teams entered for the season and that 's like any contract -- you can only change it if both sides agree . all 12 teams would have to agree to change the indian date and go back to bahrain , so it only takes one team to say'i do n't agree'and that 'll be the end of it . it would not be possible for it to happen . ' | former motorsport chief max mosley told cnn the bahrain race wo n't go ahead |
petter solberg <tsp> ( cnn ) -- sebastien loeb claimed his sixth monte carlo rally crown as his quest for a ninth-straight world rally title got off to the perfect start . the frenchman completed the formalities sunday after virtually securing the crown with a dominant performance through saturday 's night stages . loeb , who drives for the citroen team , left the principality with a maximum 28 points after winning the final 5km'power'stage by two minutes and 41 seconds . the'indestructible legend'of the monte carlo rally ' for sure it 's always a great moment to start the season like this especially in front of so many fans , ' loeb was quoted as saying on the world rally championship 's official website . full points in the first race is incredible and for sure it 's the perfect start to my title defense . but monte-carlo is my rally and for the others we will have to see . ' can senna restore romance to formula one ? mini 's daniel sordo , from spain , came in second to secure his team 's first podium since 1967 , while norwegian petter solberg sealed third place for ford . mikko hirvonen 's impressive debut for citroen saw him claim fourth spot and russian evgeny novikov was fifth . the next event in the world rally championship season starts in sweden on february 9 . | dnaiel sordo is second for mini while petter solberg was third for ford |
ford <tsp> ( cnn ) -- sebastien loeb claimed his sixth monte carlo rally crown as his quest for a ninth-straight world rally title got off to the perfect start . the frenchman completed the formalities sunday after virtually securing the crown with a dominant performance through saturday 's night stages . loeb , who drives for the citroen team , left the principality with a maximum 28 points after winning the final 5km'power'stage by two minutes and 41 seconds . the'indestructible legend'of the monte carlo rally ' for sure it 's always a great moment to start the season like this especially in front of so many fans , ' loeb was quoted as saying on the world rally championship 's official website . full points in the first race is incredible and for sure it 's the perfect start to my title defense . but monte-carlo is my rally and for the others we will have to see . ' can senna restore romance to formula one ? mini 's daniel sordo , from spain , came in second to secure his team 's first podium since 1967 , while norwegian petter solberg sealed third place for ford . mikko hirvonen 's impressive debut for citroen saw him claim fourth spot and russian evgeny novikov was fifth . the next event in the world rally championship season starts in sweden on february 9 . | dnaiel sordo is second for mini while petter solberg was third for ford |
bolsheviks <tsp> ( cnn ) -- one of the most enduring mysteries of the 20th century has been put to rest : dna analysis of bone fragments has proven that two of czar nicholas'children believed to have escaped were killed with their royal family during the russian revolution . czar nicholas ii , from left , daughters olga , maria , wife alexandra , kids anastasia , alexei and tatiana in 1917 . the chemically damaged and burnt remains were found in the romanov family 's makeshift grave outside the city of yekaterinburg , russia , in 2007 . in 2008 , scientists used bone and tooth fragments to identify the remains as those of the two missing children of czar nicholas ii : 13-year-old crown prince alexei , the emperor 's only son and heir to the throne , and his sister grand duchess maria , about 19 . researchers wanted to confirm their findings by comparing dna from the remains with that of living romanov relatives . the results of the dna analysis were published online tuesday in the journal plos one . the romanov family , the last russian monarchy , was executed in 1918 by bolsheviks in the basement of a home in yekaterinburg , about 900 miles ( 1,448 kilometers ) east of moscow . several of their staff members and servants also were killed . nicholas'reign had ended when he abdicated the throne in 1917 at the time of the russian revolution . the remains of the family were discovered in 1991 , during the last days of the soviet union . in 1998 , those remains -- of nicholas , his wife , alexandra , and three daughters -- were interred in a cathedral in st. petersburg that contains the crypts of other russian royalty . at the time , many thought that alexei and maria might have escaped -- leading to hopes among royal supporters that one or both romanovs were still alive . but clues left by one of the family 's assassins led investigators to the grave where the remains of alexei and maria were unearthed in 2007 . the drama surrounding the romanovs has been the subject of many books , movies and documentaries . several women have claimed that they were anastasia , nicholas'youngest daughter , contending that they escaped the executions . the body of one impostor , anna anderson , was cremated when she died in 1984 . dna tests showed she was not related to the romanov family . | the romanovs , the last russian monarchy , were executed in 1918 by bolsheviks |
david beckham <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in-form england striker wayne rooney scored the opening two goals as manchester united crushed ac milan 4-0 to reach the quarterfinals of the champions league . park ji-sung and darren fletcher were also on target for the english premier league champions as united secured a convincing 7-2 aggregate success . all the talk beforehand was of milan midfielder david beckham 's return to old trafford for the first time since united sold him to real madrid in 2003 . and the england star was given an emotional reception by the united fans when he came on as a second-half substitute . however , milan were already 3-0 behind when beckham was introduced by milan coach leonardo and , despite some nice touches and a couple of dangerous crosses , was powerless to help milan back into the match . rooney took his personal tally for the season to 30 with goals either side of half-time . the opener came in the 13th minute when rooney rose between two milan defenders to head home a gary neville right-wing cross . and the second came just 54 seconds after the break when rooney broke clear through the middle to get a decisive touch to nani 's superb cross with the outside of his foot . the tie was firmly killed off when korean park finished off a paul scholes pass and the scoring was completed when darren fletcher converted at the far post with two minutes remaining . it was a disappointing night because we lost the game but returning here is always special , ' beckham told itv sport . it was unbelievable . i have to say thank you . it was really incredible . it was nice to be back , a disappointing night but nice to be back . ' | milan 's david beckham receives a superb ovation from the old trafford crowd |
park ji-sung <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in-form england striker wayne rooney scored the opening two goals as manchester united crushed ac milan 4-0 to reach the quarterfinals of the champions league . park ji-sung and darren fletcher were also on target for the english premier league champions as united secured a convincing 7-2 aggregate success . all the talk beforehand was of milan midfielder david beckham 's return to old trafford for the first time since united sold him to real madrid in 2003 . and the england star was given an emotional reception by the united fans when he came on as a second-half substitute . however , milan were already 3-0 behind when beckham was introduced by milan coach leonardo and , despite some nice touches and a couple of dangerous crosses , was powerless to help milan back into the match . rooney took his personal tally for the season to 30 with goals either side of half-time . the opener came in the 13th minute when rooney rose between two milan defenders to head home a gary neville right-wing cross . and the second came just 54 seconds after the break when rooney broke clear through the middle to get a decisive touch to nani 's superb cross with the outside of his foot . the tie was firmly killed off when korean park finished off a paul scholes pass and the scoring was completed when darren fletcher converted at the far post with two minutes remaining . it was a disappointing night because we lost the game but returning here is always special , ' beckham told itv sport . it was unbelievable . i have to say thank you . it was really incredible . it was nice to be back , a disappointing night but nice to be back . ' | park ji-sung and darren fletcher also on target for a 7-2 aggregate success |
darren fletcher <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in-form england striker wayne rooney scored the opening two goals as manchester united crushed ac milan 4-0 to reach the quarterfinals of the champions league . park ji-sung and darren fletcher were also on target for the english premier league champions as united secured a convincing 7-2 aggregate success . all the talk beforehand was of milan midfielder david beckham 's return to old trafford for the first time since united sold him to real madrid in 2003 . and the england star was given an emotional reception by the united fans when he came on as a second-half substitute . however , milan were already 3-0 behind when beckham was introduced by milan coach leonardo and , despite some nice touches and a couple of dangerous crosses , was powerless to help milan back into the match . rooney took his personal tally for the season to 30 with goals either side of half-time . the opener came in the 13th minute when rooney rose between two milan defenders to head home a gary neville right-wing cross . and the second came just 54 seconds after the break when rooney broke clear through the middle to get a decisive touch to nani 's superb cross with the outside of his foot . the tie was firmly killed off when korean park finished off a paul scholes pass and the scoring was completed when darren fletcher converted at the far post with two minutes remaining . it was a disappointing night because we lost the game but returning here is always special , ' beckham told itv sport . it was unbelievable . i have to say thank you . it was really incredible . it was nice to be back , a disappointing night but nice to be back . ' | park ji-sung and darren fletcher also on target for a 7-2 aggregate success |
chelsea lately <tsp> ( cnn ) -- chelsea handler has made a clean break from e ! . or at least we assume it was clean , since handler 's final chelsea lately ' episode tuesday included one of her infamous celebrity-accompanied shower scenes . over the past seven years of chelsea lately ' on the e ! network , host handler has roped two other stars -- friend sandra bullock and fellow late night host conan o'brien -- into having nude shower fights with her . the running gag was brought to a close on tuesday as an indignant ellen degeneres climbed into handler 's roomy shower set , fully clothed but wearing a shower cap , demanding answers as to why handler never had her on the show . is it because i 'm a lesbian ? ' degeneres asked handler , who , per usual , was stark naked . no ! ' handler responded . i did n't even know you were a lesbian . i thought you were married to ryan seacrest . ' you did n't think handler would say goodbye to e ! without landing another joke against the network 's patron saint of celebrity news , did you ? what we 'll miss about'chelsea lately' throughout chelsea lately 's ' eight-season run , handler has commandeered an unabashedly salty late night show , which on a typical night included a ring of celebrity trash-talking comedians and a celebrity interview that ran more bawdy than promotional . those irritated by the justin biebers and kardashians of the world likely found a kindred spirit in handler , who was n't ashamed to have open contempt for some of her show 's topics . ( one of the rumored reasons for handler 's exit was that she just did n't want to talk about bieber anymore . ) it 's no surprise that neither the pop star nor e ! 's first family participated in handler 's farewell show tuesday , but there was n't a shortage of celebrity guests . handler is known to run with a powerful crew that includes a-list actress jennifer aniston . on tuesday , the former friends ' star joined sandra bullock and mary mccormack for a mock intervention ( sit through it until the end ; the surprise guest is worth it ) , and miley cyrus also showed up to perform a cover of roy orbison 's it 's over . ' several more famous faces arrived to help sing handler off the network , from fergie and gwen stefani , to gerard butler , selena gomez , dave grohl and alanis morissette . stefani , who accidentally called the colbert report ' the colbore report ' at the emmys on monday , poked fun at her mistake by introducing handler as her good friend , chelsea hammer . ' goodbye to e ! , it 's time to move on , ' the stars sang in unison before instructing in classic handler fashion , so roll yourself a joint , and have a drink . ' on a more serious note , handler did make some final remarks . i want to thank every single person who 's shown up for me in the last seven years , ' handler said . i never really got a good chance to be serious and say thank you , and i want you to know that i am grateful for this career . ' handler is moving on to netflix from e ! , where she 's expected to produce some comedy specials and deliver a new talk show in early 2016 . thank you to my family , and mom i hope you 're watching me , ' handler said in her goodbye speech . i 'll see you on netflix ! ' | chelsea handler said goodbye to e ! with the final episode of chelsea lately ' tuesday |
netflix <tsp> ( cnn ) -- chelsea handler has made a clean break from e ! . or at least we assume it was clean , since handler 's final chelsea lately ' episode tuesday included one of her infamous celebrity-accompanied shower scenes . over the past seven years of chelsea lately ' on the e ! network , host handler has roped two other stars -- friend sandra bullock and fellow late night host conan o'brien -- into having nude shower fights with her . the running gag was brought to a close on tuesday as an indignant ellen degeneres climbed into handler 's roomy shower set , fully clothed but wearing a shower cap , demanding answers as to why handler never had her on the show . is it because i 'm a lesbian ? ' degeneres asked handler , who , per usual , was stark naked . no ! ' handler responded . i did n't even know you were a lesbian . i thought you were married to ryan seacrest . ' you did n't think handler would say goodbye to e ! without landing another joke against the network 's patron saint of celebrity news , did you ? what we 'll miss about'chelsea lately' throughout chelsea lately 's ' eight-season run , handler has commandeered an unabashedly salty late night show , which on a typical night included a ring of celebrity trash-talking comedians and a celebrity interview that ran more bawdy than promotional . those irritated by the justin biebers and kardashians of the world likely found a kindred spirit in handler , who was n't ashamed to have open contempt for some of her show 's topics . ( one of the rumored reasons for handler 's exit was that she just did n't want to talk about bieber anymore . ) it 's no surprise that neither the pop star nor e ! 's first family participated in handler 's farewell show tuesday , but there was n't a shortage of celebrity guests . handler is known to run with a powerful crew that includes a-list actress jennifer aniston . on tuesday , the former friends ' star joined sandra bullock and mary mccormack for a mock intervention ( sit through it until the end ; the surprise guest is worth it ) , and miley cyrus also showed up to perform a cover of roy orbison 's it 's over . ' several more famous faces arrived to help sing handler off the network , from fergie and gwen stefani , to gerard butler , selena gomez , dave grohl and alanis morissette . stefani , who accidentally called the colbert report ' the colbore report ' at the emmys on monday , poked fun at her mistake by introducing handler as her good friend , chelsea hammer . ' goodbye to e ! , it 's time to move on , ' the stars sang in unison before instructing in classic handler fashion , so roll yourself a joint , and have a drink . ' on a more serious note , handler did make some final remarks . i want to thank every single person who 's shown up for me in the last seven years , ' handler said . i never really got a good chance to be serious and say thank you , and i want you to know that i am grateful for this career . ' handler is moving on to netflix from e ! , where she 's expected to produce some comedy specials and deliver a new talk show in early 2016 . thank you to my family , and mom i hope you 're watching me , ' handler said in her goodbye speech . i 'll see you on netflix ! ' | handler is moving to netflix next |
cnn <tsp> former president of poland , lech walesa , was a founder of the solidarity trade union group that helped bring about about the downfall of communism in poland in 1989 . he won the nobel peace prize in 1983 and was the country 's president from 1990 to 1995 . his eponymous lech walesa institute was set up in 1995 to support concepts of independence , ethics and state decentralization . cnn asked him about his recollections from 25 years ago and his thoughts on the future of poland . cnn : what are you strongest memories from this time 25 years ago ? lech walesa : i prefer to look at today and tomorrow . sometimes , however , it 's good to take a look back to learn a lesson from the past . there have been so many events with influence on the present time that they form a chain of events reaching back much further than 1989 . it all dates back to 1970 , when the social discontent reached its peak and forced many of us to take to the streets . next , we witnessed the election of karol wojtyła to the papacy , the august agreements , the creation of solidarity , the imposition of martial law , the round table talks , the partially-free election in 1989 , then my presidency as a seal of freedom and lastly the admission of poland to nato and to the european union . i consider all these elements to be consecutive links in the chain of freedom , without which neither poland nor europe would be free . cnn : what was the biggest challenge you faced personally during your days with solidarity before 1989 ? lech walesa : the most important one was to persevere in unity . to stick to our goal . not to be broken down . and yet we were so badly impacted by martial law . in prison we went through an ordeal . we were not broken down . our faith was never shaken . it was strengthened by what happened in august 1980 . this is our great victory . at that time , nobody expected us to succeed . we had a vivid memory of the tragic events of december 1970 . we knew we had to work together . already on the first day we set up an inter-enterprise strike committee and started to work on the demands . we eventually managed to hammer out 21 demands , which were signed on december 31st together with the government , which was represented by mieczysław jagielski . this was our greatest challenge and greatest victory . soon after , our tiny union had 10 million members all over poland . the 1980s were a time of struggle to build an organization and its structures . it was also a fight for unity and perseverance in the path we had chosen . although weakened , we were not defeated and so we lasted until 1988 and 1989 . we lost a couple of battles , but we won the war for democracy and freedom . it 's because we were working in solidarity . and the world was in solidarity with us . cnn : what gave you the strength to continue the struggle against the communist government in poland ? what qualities do you think you had that made you do what you did ? lech walesa : this is made up of several things . one of them was our faith that this sick , unfair system must finally collapse . we did n't know how to make it happen , how to get organized so as not to repeat the mistakes made in 1970 ( during the protests ) . in my opinion , divine providence helped us at this stage . it 's then that a pole who became pope helped us to organize ourselves in prayer and also made us understand our inner strength . his regular visits to poland , although hindered by the communist authorities , played this role . the masses celebrated by the holy father gathered millions of poles . we could see that we were many , that we were millions . before that , we had been scattered and divided . it was the first time in post-war poland that the polish nation had joined forces on such a massive scale . i 'm sure that had there been no pontificate of john paul ii , the fall of communism would n't have happened as quickly or as peacefully as it did . the holy father did not call us to fight , but gathered us in prayer . and we were able to match actions with words . cnn : do you have any regrets from your life during the anti-communist days ? lech walsa : concerning our peaceful struggle , i have no regrets whatsoever . of course , when i look at it today , from the perspective of years , i wish i had done a few things differently , but as for the path we took , i would n't have changed it . despite such a great victory , i have a feeling that i missed something . when i was fighting , when i was repeatedly arrested and in prison or when i traveled all over the country to coordinate the activity of unions , my wife and the children were left behind at home . regrettably , i was not with them . it 's probably my greatest failure : i was not with my family when they needed me most . for this i want to thank my wife danuta . for the fact that she put up with me and brought up our children to be good people . cnn : how do you see poland today ? lech walesa : we are now in a very different place , in a new era . today we can say with confidence that we live in a democratic poland , in a firmly established free market economic system , in a country built on solid foundations of international cooperation and in a country of high aspirations and hopes for further development . our success has been noticed . there are many who point to poland as an example of wise economic policy . we are amongst the few countries that emerged from the financial crisis relatively unscathed . the 2012 european championship was another type of promotion of poland and an opportunity to show off our achievements . i 'm also very happy to see that even those projects , which seemed doomed to failure due to the very last decisions of the communists , have in fact been able to be saved , such as my beloved gdańsk shipyard , the cradle of solidarity ' . today it is slowly rising to its feet again and building ships after many years of struggle and hope for its rescue ; there is a chance that jobs can be safeguarded and that the symbol of the polish transformation can be saved . this fills me with happiness , even if the costs of transformation were high . today poland is a truly beautiful , modern and open country . cnn : is it the country today as you hoped it would be when you cast your vote in june 1989 ? lech walesa : back in 1989 , nothing was a foregone conclusion . we had to build a state system almost from scratch . the difficult ( political and economic ) reforms of minister of finance leszek balcerowicz and the prime minister tadeusz mazowiecki allowed us to make further changes . in conjunction with boris yeltsin , i negotiated the withdrawal of red army troops from poland . we then became a member of the north atlantic treaty organization and today we are also a member of the european union . at that time , i did n't even dream that we would manage to achieve all that , and in such a short time . it 's true , poland as we see it today is beyond anything we could have dreamt of at that time . however , i regret that not everything worked out as it should have . my presidency ended after five years and i had a plan that would have required two terms to fully realize . later on , the politics of aleksander kwaśniewski were not in line with my concept . cnn : do you think democracy in poland and other former communist states is in good shape ? lech walesa : it might seem so , but we still have a problem with the sense of responsibility for the country amongst our citizens . we recently held the election to the european parliament , a very important election , in which decided who would be representing us at the european union . the average turnout throughout the eu was low -- only 43 % . in poland , however , it stood at 23 % . and even lower than that in slovakia and in the czech republic . it 's alarming . first we expect old europe ' to accept us and treat us on an equal footing and then we renounce our right to vote . moreover , parties with extremist views are on the rise . these parties promote ideas that contradict democracy and the european union 's reason for existence . we must therefore wake up , because if we continue to be indifferent , we may ourselves destroy our great dream of international solidarity . on the other hand , i 'm a 100 % democrat and if parties with such an outlook on life enter the parliament , i have no choice but to accept it . i only call for votes during the next election to be cast in a well-conceived manner . cnn : what is the biggest challenge facing poland and polish society today ? lech walesa : the biggest challenge for poland , europe and the world is the reshuffling and widening of structures . i have already been saying it for quite some time : we must evolve past thinking in terms of the nation state and the european state . we live in an era of intellect , information and globalization . we live under new conditions that require us to create a totally different set of programs and structures . it 's a task not only for poland , but also for the entire population of contemporary europe and the world at large . our present systems do not meet our current needs . the new era offers us new challenges . we who destroyed communism , whose downfall has triggered a domino effect of transformation throughout europe , should provide an example and inspiration for the entire world . we must show how to change even the most difficult reality through purely democratic means , without the use of violence . today we must ask ourselves which world we are going to built in this new era and how democracy and globalization are going to look . for a long time already , i have been calling for the development of a decalogue of universal values that would serve as a lasting reference point for this new europe and the world . we must define and accept laws establishing common principles , which would allow nations and religions to co-exist in a spirit of respect for differences and friendly cooperation . once such a universal basis is established , we will succeed in building lasting and safe communities . otherwise it may be hard to maintain the world as it is at present . | poland 's former president lech walesa talks to cnn 's dean irvine |
department of transportation <tsp> ( cnn ) -- president obama 's spending plan is just the first step in a process that will involve no less than 40 congressional committees , 24 subcommittees , countless hearings and a number of floor votes in the house and senate , with the aim of getting funding in place for the federal government by the beginning of the 2012 fiscal year october 1 . congress never passed a budget for the current fiscal year , and the government has been running on a continuing resolution , ' which expires march 4 . house republicans have thrown down the gauntlet over cuts to current programs and threaten to shut down the government if they do n't get their way . after obama sends his 2012 plan to capitol hill , house and senate budget committees each pass their own budget resolutions , which set caps on spending and establish revenue targets and generally serve as five- to 10-year blueprints for congressional priorities . the budget resolutions also allocate how much may be spent on broad budget functions like defense and education but not individual programs . house and senate numbers often differ , and the chambers must resolve their differences and pass a single budget act . obama : budget'down payment'on debt next , the appropriations committees and subcommittees in each chamber debate how to allocate discretionary funds among government agencies and programs . if all does n't go according to plan , congress must pass a continuing resolution like last year 's by 11:59 p.m. september 30 to continue funding the government as lawmakers continue to try to slice up the budget pie . justice budget includes increase for prisons here are some highlights from obama 's plan : department of education there 's a good reason obama went to a school to make his first public pitch after his spending plan was released . education is one of the few areas to get a significant increase in funding : $ 4.5 billion more than in his 2011 budget . obama requests increase for education in 2012 the $ 77.4 billion request would be spent on reforms , teacher training for stem subjects ( science , technology , engineering and math ) and reauthorization of the elementary and secondary education act , also known as no child left behind . obama wants to spend $ 80 million to recruit 10,000 teachers in stem subjects in the next two years , 100,000 over the next 10 years . he also wants $ 900 million for a new round of race to the top , the competition that rewards states that meet the administrations standards for innovation and outcomes . the budget request maintains the current funding level for pell grants , but it recommends dropping the year-round option that began in 2009 . it also drops subsidies that allowed grad students to avoid interest accruing on loans while they are in school . department of defense the plan increases the pentagon 's base budget to $ 553 billion , $ 22 billion more than last year . defense , state fight for more funding it reinvests $ 100 billion expected to be saved through cuts to areas like development or purchase of unmanned intelligence , surveillance , and reconnaissance assets ; proposals for more ships ; a new ground combat vehicle ; the advanced extremely high frequency satellite ; and the f-35 joint strike fighter . the budget includes a 1.6 % increase for military pay as well as an increase in housing allowances and health care , especially for wounded service members . the wars in iraq and afghanistan are covered separately , with $ 118 billion set aside : more than $ 41 billion less than last year , mostly because of the withdrawal of troops from iraq . slight increase sought for homeland security department of transportation the plan provides $ 13.4 billion in discretionary resources in 2012 , a $ 1.3 billion decrease from 2010 . it proposes a six-year , $ 556 billion surface reauthorization plan to modernize the country 's transportation infrastructure . it provides $ 8 billion in 2012 and $ 53 billion over six years to reach a goal of providing 80 percent of americans with convenient access to a passenger rail system , featuring high-speed service , within 25 years . the plan reduces funding for airport grants , focusing support on smaller airports , while giving larger airports more flexibility to raise their own resources . department of veterans affairs obama 's plan provides $ 61.85 billion , a 10.6 % increase over 2010 it proposes a multiyear budgeting approach to manage medical care resources across multiple fiscal years , including advance appropriations for the 2013 fiscal year it reduces construction spending and redirects those funds for care and benefits to veterans . department of the interior obama 's plan budgets $ 12 billion , which is roughly the same as in previous years , and increases land and water conservation programs . the savings are planned through decreases in the u.s. geological survey , cuts in construction programs and tribal program reductions . the plan provides more than $ 500 million to restructure the bureau of ocean energy management , regulation and enforcement and to strengthen oversight of offshore oil and gas operations in the aftermath of the deepwater horizon explosion and oil disaster in the gulf of mexico last year . department of state and international programs the plan provides $ 47 billion for the state department and the u.s. agency for international development , a decrease of less than 1 % from 2010 . increases are made in the areas of food security and global health . foreign assistance to several countries is cut . the plan reduces funding for the african development and inter-american foundations by nearly 20 % and directs them to seek partnerships to leverage remaining funding . | plan decreases discretionary resources for the department of transportation |
devon <tsp> london ( cnn ) -- monkeys and bananas . it 's as natural a pairing as squirrels and nuts or movies and popcorn . not any more , says one zoo in southwest england . paignton zoo in devon is grabbing bananas out of its monkeys'hands , giving them leafy veggies and sprouts instead . this is no monkey-business diet fad , though . the zoo says the high calorie and sugar content of bananas grown for human consumption -- which are sweeter than those found in the wild -- are bad for the monkeys'health and can rot their teeth . bananas grown for human consumption are full of sugar and calories , and bear no relation to fruit grown organically , ' said zoo spokesman philip knowling . life in the wild is hard work and in a zoo you can sometimes look after the animals too well and it is n't good for their health . ' thicker , better fur humans can continue gobbling up their bananas , just keep them away from monkeys . sweet and juicy bananas are good for humans but not for monkeys , ' knowling said . animal nutrition has become a problem . bananas and monkeys is a bit of a cliche , but they 're not a good combination . ' the zoo has not been able to find a supplier for the kind of wild-grown bananas that would be more suitable for the monkeys , he said . so , it decided it was time to put them back on the shelf . the zoo has seen definite changes ' in the monkey 's behavior since the bananas were slowly withdrawn from their diet , knowling said . we 've noticed a net improvement in their coat and their fur is thicker and better . some of the smaller monkeys are less aggressive , ' he said . thailand 's annual'monkey buffet' diabetes risk according to the zoo 's head of conservation , amy plowman , the bananas'high sugar content could cause the monkeys to develop diabetes or similar conditions . it can also cause gastrointestinal problems as their stomachs are mostly adapted to eating fibrous foods with very low digestibility , ' she said . zoos are getting smarter in the way they feed their captive animals . rather than throw in ready chopped and prepared food , many now try to make the animals work ' for their calories by searching for scattered foodstuffs or doing puzzles to release treats . this is just the next step , plowman said . knowling said there was no obvious sign that the monkeys were missing the fruit . in fact , they could well be happier without the extra sugar . smaller monkeys such as tamarins and marmosets are highly strung animals and live in tight-knit social groups which can be quite aggressive at times , ' said matthew webb , senior head keeper of mammals . reducing the sugar in their diets has calmed them down and made their groups more settled . ' iran claims 2nd launch of monkey into space and back | paignton zoo in devon takes bananas out of its monkeys'diet |
cornwall <tsp> athens ( cnn ) -- greece handed over the olympic flame to britain in an elaborate ceremony thursday , 71 days before the start of the london 2012 olympic games . following a display by performers representing the high priestesses of ancient greece , the torch was accepted by princess anne , the british olympic association president . crowds gathered despite rainy weather to watch the handover in the panathenaic stadium in athens . it was attended by soccer player david beckham and london 's recently re-elected mayor , boris johnson , as well as five young britons picked for their commitment to sport . the flame , which has already made a weeklong journey around greece after being lit at ancient olympia , birthplace of the games , will be carried back to the uk by the british delegation on friday . the 70-day torch relay around britain starts saturday in the far southwest of england , in land 's end , cornwall . along its route , which will take in in towns , villages and cities across england , wales , scotland and northern ireland before reaching london , the torch will pass within 10 miles of 95 % of the uk population . sebastian coe , the british olympian who heads the london 2012 organizing group , said many of the 8,000 torch bearers had inspirational personal stories to share . the torch relay also will tell the story of a modern and confident united kingdom , ' he said , ahead of games that he hopes will unite the world in challenging times . the handover in athens comes against the backdrop of political and economic turmoil roiling greece . a temporary greek government took office thursday as the country wrestles with a political crisis that sprang from the country 's inability to pay its debts . cnn 's laura smith-spark contributed to this report . | a 70-day torch relay starts saturday in land 's end , cornwall |
olympic <tsp> athens ( cnn ) -- greece handed over the olympic flame to britain in an elaborate ceremony thursday , 71 days before the start of the london 2012 olympic games . following a display by performers representing the high priestesses of ancient greece , the torch was accepted by princess anne , the british olympic association president . crowds gathered despite rainy weather to watch the handover in the panathenaic stadium in athens . it was attended by soccer player david beckham and london 's recently re-elected mayor , boris johnson , as well as five young britons picked for their commitment to sport . the flame , which has already made a weeklong journey around greece after being lit at ancient olympia , birthplace of the games , will be carried back to the uk by the british delegation on friday . the 70-day torch relay around britain starts saturday in the far southwest of england , in land 's end , cornwall . along its route , which will take in in towns , villages and cities across england , wales , scotland and northern ireland before reaching london , the torch will pass within 10 miles of 95 % of the uk population . sebastian coe , the british olympian who heads the london 2012 organizing group , said many of the 8,000 torch bearers had inspirational personal stories to share . the torch relay also will tell the story of a modern and confident united kingdom , ' he said , ahead of games that he hopes will unite the world in challenging times . the handover in athens comes against the backdrop of political and economic turmoil roiling greece . a temporary greek government took office thursday as the country wrestles with a political crisis that sprang from the country 's inability to pay its debts . cnn 's laura smith-spark contributed to this report . | the olympic flame was handed to britain 's princess anne in athens |
athens <tsp> athens ( cnn ) -- greece handed over the olympic flame to britain in an elaborate ceremony thursday , 71 days before the start of the london 2012 olympic games . following a display by performers representing the high priestesses of ancient greece , the torch was accepted by princess anne , the british olympic association president . crowds gathered despite rainy weather to watch the handover in the panathenaic stadium in athens . it was attended by soccer player david beckham and london 's recently re-elected mayor , boris johnson , as well as five young britons picked for their commitment to sport . the flame , which has already made a weeklong journey around greece after being lit at ancient olympia , birthplace of the games , will be carried back to the uk by the british delegation on friday . the 70-day torch relay around britain starts saturday in the far southwest of england , in land 's end , cornwall . along its route , which will take in in towns , villages and cities across england , wales , scotland and northern ireland before reaching london , the torch will pass within 10 miles of 95 % of the uk population . sebastian coe , the british olympian who heads the london 2012 organizing group , said many of the 8,000 torch bearers had inspirational personal stories to share . the torch relay also will tell the story of a modern and confident united kingdom , ' he said , ahead of games that he hopes will unite the world in challenging times . the handover in athens comes against the backdrop of political and economic turmoil roiling greece . a temporary greek government took office thursday as the country wrestles with a political crisis that sprang from the country 's inability to pay its debts . cnn 's laura smith-spark contributed to this report . | the olympic flame was handed to britain 's princess anne in athens |
spain <tsp> ( cnn ) -- lionel messi 's sixth hat-trick of 2010 helped barcelona demolish almeria 8-0 on saturday night , but three goals from cristiano ronaldo kept real madrid on top in spain ahead of next monday 's clasico ' clash between the la liga giants . messi reached the milestone of 100 league goals for barcelona in just 154 appearances for the defending champions , and has already scored 22 this season in all competitions . his third goal briefly lifted him above ronaldo as the league 's top scorer on 13 , putting the visitors seven up before the argentine laid on substitute bojan krkic 's second goal with 17 minutes to play . barcelona led 5-0 at the halftime break , with messi breaking the deadlock in the 17th minute after combining well with david villa . andres iniesta made it 2-0 a minute later after woeful defending by almeria , with his misplaced cross fortuitously rebounding back into his path , then peru defender wilmer acasiete turned maxwell 's low cross into his own net on 27 . pedro embarrassed the onrushing diego alves eight minutes later as he easily won the race to a long ball in the 35th minute , then soon after messi netted from the winger 's low cross at the second attempt after the goalkeeper parried his first . messi helped set up bojan 's first in the 62nd minute , with the 20-year-old showing nimble feet before dinking the ball over alves . the beleaguered alves could only parry villa 's shot into messi 's pass for the seventh , and bojan made no mistake when sent free down the middle to seal the biggest win of the spanish season so far and leave almeria in the bottom three . the home side had conceded only 10 goals in 11 games -- the third best defensive record in the league behind real and barcelona -- but coach juan manuel lillo was sacked after the match . barcelona travel to greece on wednesday to face panathinaikos in the champions league , then host real in a monday fixture forced due to security concerns over the catalan elections that weekend . real madrid will take a one-point lead into that match following the 5-1 victory at home to athletic bilbao in the late match , as coach jose mourinho completed his two-match touchline ban . with the portuguese boss watching from various positions in the stands , real almost went behind in just the second minute when defender pepe had to clear off the line from fernando llorente . but gonzalo higuain put real ahead in the 19th minute with a clinical low finish after fellow argentine angel di maria slipped a low pass into the penalty area , and ronaldo doubled the lead on the half-hour after mesut ozil cleverly knocked the ball into his path . spain striker llorente reduced the deficit five minutes before halftime from close range with his ninth league goal of the season , but real restored their two-goal buffer 11 minutes after the break . di maria duped markel susaeta into bringing him down just inside the box , and defender sergio ramos surprisingly stepped up to smash home the resulting penalty for his first goal of the campaign . ronaldo effectively sealed the win in the 62nd minute with a swerving free-kick that wrongfooted goalkeeper gorka iraizoz could only palm into his net . the portugal forward then netted his 15th league goal this season -- and 17th overall -- from the penalty spot in time added on after substitute esteban granero was brought down , despite having to retake the kick after illegally stopping in his initial run-up . bilbao , who hit the bar through javi martinez in the 87th minute , were left in ninth place -- 16 points behind real . villarreal retained third place after coming from behind to earn a 1-1 draw at home to 10-man valencia , who stayed fourth . aritz aduriz put valencia ahead in the 20th minute with a deflected shot as villarreal -- who had won all five previous home matches this season -- conceded at el madrigal for just the second time . italy forward giuseppe rossi gave his side a lifeline in the 73rd minute with a volley for his eighth la liga goal of the campaign as his team now trail real by eight points . valencia lost lithuania defender marius stankevicius to a second yellow card with 10 minutes to go , but held on for the draw ahead of wednesday 's champions league clash with turkish side bursaspor . | real madrid stay one point clear in spain after beating athletic bilbao 5-1 |
randy <tsp> ( ew.com ) -- joyful noise , ' a squeaky-clean pop-gospel fairy tale featuring dolly parton and queen latifah in canned catfights , reflects the inspiration of glee ' and god , in that order . the glee ' side , at least in my book , does n't exactly amount to a recommendation , but it does mean that the movie 's musical numbers are catchy and rollicking and , in their bright sunshiny way , rather soulful . in the small town of pacashau , georgia , times are hard -- every other storefront is empty -- but the divinity church choir has lifted local spirits by rising to become a semifinalist in the national joyful noise competition . can these spunky vocalists go the distance ? not until they learn to work together in harmony . which means that vi rose hill ( latifah ) , the choir 's new director , has to stop feuding with g.g . sparrow ( parton ) , widow of the former choir leader , over the direction of the group 's music . vi rose , feisty and smart-mouthed , favors tradition , while g.g. , whose grandson randy ( jeremy jordan ) is the new songbird on the block , is out to shake things up . parton now looks like a spitting image ' puppet ( the film makes plastic-surgery jokes about her so that we do n't have to ) , but she still has a way with lines like i 'd call you stubborn , but that 'd be an insult to mules ! ' joyful noise ' also finds room for a teenager with asperger 's syndrome ( dexter darden ) who loves one-hit-wonder songs ( but can he learn to love himself ? ) , as well as a romance between randy and vi rose 's daughter olivia ( keke palmer ) . these two are pretty -- and as bland as balsa wood . but each time the innocuousness starts to get to you , you 're woken up by randy and olivia 's swooning maybe i 'm amazed ' duet , or a kid-choir rendition of billy preston 's that 's the way god planned it , ' or the final i want to take you higher ' blowout . these numbers create a deep river of feeling , even when stuck in the shallow banks of a movie like this one . b- see the full article at ew.com . click here to try 2 risk free issues of entertainment weekly © 2011 entertainment weekly and time inc. all rights reserved . | joyful noise ' also finds room for a romance between randy and olivia |
west african <tsp> conakry , guinea ( cnn ) -- after three days of violence throughout the country that killed at least nine people , injured dozens more and pushed the ruling military junta to declare a national state of emergency , calm returned to guinea on thursday . military units are now deployed around the country to preserve the peace , tranquility and national unity , ' said gen.nouhou thiam , army chief-of-staff , on state radio . the state of emergency will last until the west african country 's supreme court finalizes results from a november 7 runoff between longtime opposition leader alpha conde and former prime minister cellou dalein diallo that put conde on top with 52.52 percent of the vote . since the provisional results were announced on monday night , supporters of diallo , largely from the peul ethnic group , have clashed with conde supporters and security forces . many shops in areas effected by violence reopened thirsday , and automobile and pedestrian traffic resumed to near-normal levels . it was a remarkable turnaround from 24 hours earlier , when military police were clashing with civilians in broad daylight throughout the capital city of conakry . french radio rfi reported that strife-torn cities in the northern fouta djallon region such as labe , dalaba and pita had calmed by thursday as well . but residents of conakry 's impoverished suburbs of cosa , hamdallaye , enco5 and bambeto -- areas of majority peul supporters of defeated candidate diallo -- are wary of the near future . many residents reported gunfire throughout tuesday night as roving military units continuously fired into the air . the daytime is calm , the violence happens at night . last night i heard a lot of gunshots . i could not sleep , my wife and children were sleeping under the bed to avoid stray bullets , ' said youssouf bah , a hamdallaye resident . the military was around , opening fire . when we woke up this morning , some families complained that the military was entering houses , ' bah added . guinea 's military has long been scrutinized for alleged human rights abuses . last september security forces opened fire on civilians protesting military rule , killing more than 150 and injuring more than 1,000 , and allegedly raping hundreds of women , according to the u.s. government and human rights groups . guinea , rich in minerals , is one of the poorest countries in africa . it has never held free and fair presidential elections until this year . | by thursday , calm had returned to the west african nation |
santa monica <tsp> los angeles ( cnn ) -- lindsay lohan 's lawyer accuses prosecutors of leaking details of her case to tmz , which he says resulted in an inaccurate report ' about where the actress will go for rehab . mark heller , who is himself being investigated for alleged witness tampering in lohan 's probation violation case , called for an investigation of the santa monica and los angeles city attorneys . it 's horrible , because lindsay lohan or any defendant should be able to feel that their privacy is being protected , ' heller told cnn on wednesday after tmz reported lohan would check into the seafield center in westhampton beach , new york , for her court-mandated 90 days of substance abuse rehabilitation next month . it impacts the integrity of the legal system in california , ' said heller , a new york lawyer . that information was included in a personal and confidential ' e-mail he sent to the two prosecutors , heller said . since i 'm the only one who communicated that , it more or less would have to be that one of the two prosecutors would be their source , ' he said . a source tells me it may result in the launch of a major investigation in california to ascertain where all these leaks and breaches of confidentiality are emanating from , ' heller said . a spokesman for the los angeles city attorney declined to comment , and the santa monica prosecutor was in court and unavailable to respond . think how it impacts the facility , and the people in the facility who go to the facility to get treatment and , lo and behold , 100 paparazzi show up at the front gate and impair the privacy , ' he said . lohan , 26 , was ordered to spend 90 days in rehab as an alternative to 90 days in jail for her no contest ' pleas to lying to police about a car crash , reckless driving and violating her probation for a shoplifting conviction . it shocks me that i learn about what 's going on in this case from the internet more quickly than i do from the prosecutors , ' heller said . these internet facilities are running amok , and they are violating rights and they are perverting our judicial system . ' lindsay lohan is the victim , ' he said . she should be afforded some sort of privacy . ' santa monica police are investigating heller for suspicion of asking lohan 's personal assistant , who was in the car with the actress when she was involved in a car crash last june , to lie in his testimony by saying he had control of the porsche when it crashed into a dump truck , a source close to the investigation told cnn last month . the santa monica city attorney asked the city 's police to investigate , according to the source , who asked not to be identified since the source is not authorized to discuss it with news media . i can sum it up in one word : ridiculous , ' heller said when asked for a comment last month . what can i tell you ? ' lohan , just ahead of the premiere of scary movie 5 , ' in which she appears with charlie sheen , paid a visit to david letterman 's cbs show tuesday . we never thought we 'd see you again , honestly , because of the jokes and stuff , ' letterman told her . but you have enough spine , enough sense of yourself , enough poise to come out here and talk to me . ' lohan joked with letterman about her criminal history , but also got serious about her upcoming rehab stay . i think this is an opportunity for me to focus on what i love in life , ' she said . i do n't think it 's a bad thing , i think it 's a blessing . ' lohan tears up talking to letterman | santa monica police are investigating heller on suspicion of witness tampering |
joyce bruce <tsp> ( cnn ) robert boardwine 's path to fatherhood was unconventional , but virginia 's appeals court said tuesday he is legally entitled to be a part of his son 's life . boardwine 's friend , joyce bruce , had used his sperm and a turkey baster to get pregnant . she thought after she learned she was with child that they should just be friends . she also thought that because they never had sex , she was entitled to be the boy 's sole parent , according to court documents . the court of appeals of virginia decided differently in weighing the commonwealth 's assisted conception statute and denying bruce 's appeal to deny boardwine visitation . it agreed with a circuit court ruling that method of insemination did n't come from medical technology . the plain meaning of the term'medical technology'does not encompass a kitchen implement such as a turkey baster , ' the appeals court wrote in its decision . bruce 's attorney , monica t. monday , said she would need to talk to her client before she can comment about whether they will file an appeal . boardwine initially was hesitant when bruce approached him in 2010 with the turkey baster idea , the court document says . they talked about writing their agreement down on paper , but that never happened . they tried the turkey baster method a few times . he 'd come over to her house , go to a room alone , bring his sperm in a plastic cup , they 'd chat , and he 'd leave . then she 'd use the kitchen utensil and wait . after she did n't get pregnant , she twice tried a fertility doctor . no luck . she and boardwine tried a few more times , and in july , she learned she was going to have a baby . boardwine came by the house with a stuffed bear and clothes for the baby . things were ok . he thought he was going to be able to see the newborn as often as he wanted . she thought he could have some involvement , ' the appeals court decision says , but she would be the sole parent . he 'd be like any other friend , certainly not have formal visitation . then they argued . over what to name the baby . they did n't speak for more than five months after that . the baby was born , and boardwine says he learned about the baby 's arrival from someone else . he went to the hospital and saw the boy at bruce 's home . joyce bruce said the visits were strained . ' she told boardwine to stop coming . so he took the matter to court . bruce argued that she used noncoital reproductive technology ' to get pregnant , and boardwine was technically a sperm donor . he argued that he always expected to be a dad , going to the kid 's games and taking part in making decisions on schools and medical needs . a court-ordered dna test proved boardwine is the biological father . the appeals court affirmed the lower court 's ruling , saying the turkey baster does n't constitute reproductive technology . boardwine was awarded joint legal custody and visitation . cnn also reached out to his attorney tuesday but did n't get a reply . cnn 's tony marco contributed to this report . | in july 2010 , joyce bruce got pregnant in an unusual way -- with repeated attempts using a turkey baster |
venice <tsp> venice , italy ( cnn ) -- public transport in venice is like an endless sightseeing tour , and not only for the amount of tourists on the central vaporetto routes . the waterfront architecture is truly spectacular , from palladian churches to private palazzos . and now during the biennale contemporary artworks and installations are scattered around the city . venturing along the waterways leads to some unmissable exhibitions , where art and architecture blend into a beautiful dialogue . baroque influence close to the rialto market on the canal grande , an 18th century palazzo is home to fondazione prada , where all three floors are open to the public for the first time . during the biennale it 's hosting a show curated by germano celant , one of the leading figures of the 1960s anti-formal art movement arte povera . celant has filled the rooms with a theatrical show . from 16th century musical instruments , clocks and mechanical curiosities to modern installation pieces involving performers , art or sound explores both formal and conceptual ideas relating to music . you can witness the craft of historic pieces as well as works by key avant-garde artists from celant 's previous collaborations , such as john cage , nam june paik , michelangelo pistoletto and jannis kounellis . their radical rethinking of art and the abstract condition of sound resonates throughout the exhibition . the unique venetian baroque interiors add another level of interest to the show . it 's both raw and historical - unlike any other contemporary art space in the world - with ornaments , carvings and rich details . the prada foundation has a contract as a patron to rescue the building and bring the original frescoes and rare , fine materials back to life , without trying to modify it through characterless facelifts ' , celant explains . modernity takes over on the other side of the water , after the rialto bridge , there is the fondaco marcello , an exhibition space in a 15th century arms storehouse by the water front . here the biennale theme of modernity extends into a scientific narrative , looking at possible ways of existence on the antarctic continent , a subject in total contrast to the surrounding architectural heritage in venice . the antarctic pavilion , curated by nadim samman makes you think of lifestyle and tourism , as well as the ecological and political questions posed by those extreme conditions on the margins of civilization . further down towards san marco square , a giant composition of 1,179 stainless steel bikes has been neatly stacked on the canal side courtyard garden of the palazzo cavalli-franchetti near the accademia bridge . this art installation , titled forever ' by ai weiwei is part of the exhibition genius loci , brought to venice by the lisson gallery . the show continues inside the 16th century palace building with sculptures and installations by international artists including tony cragg , lee ufan , julian opie and joana vasconcelos . contemporary public art the rest is slightly more modest in scale than ai weiwei 's installation , but still spectacular examples of ideas addressed in contemporary public works . there is a sense of play with architecture and space , exploring the parallels between the two disciplines , such as anish kapoor 's work which deals with our spatial perceptions . this exhibition suggests that genius loci'the special spirit'can be found in the urban space through artworks , materials and forms ; a departure from the modernist obsession with functionality . a short hop on a vaporetto takes you across the lagoon from san marco to the island of san giorgio maggiore , which has become a site for displaying large public installations . this year a geometric sculpture entitled the sky over nine columns ' dominates the waterfront square next to palladio 's famous church . its surfaces are covered with golden glass mosaics , beautifully reflecting the venetian sun . the piece by heinz mack , who represented germany at the arts biennale in 1970 , was commissioned by the cini foundation . mack is known for monumental installations : my sculptures are objects of light in space ' mack said . behind the church , an exquisitely crafted pavilion has been erected in the garden of the stanze del vetro glass museum . the aquarium-like glass tea house mondrian is designed by japanese artist hiroshi sugimoto , best known for his minimalistic photography . sugimoto 's pavilion is the first in a series of commissions , supported by the cini foundation , which follows the model of the serpentine pavilion in london . installed inside a cedar wood fenced garden , the glass pavilion will also be the setting for a traditional tea ceremony , a performance which exemplifies the delicacy in japanese culture . all these shows run parallel to the architecture biennale , overseen by dutch architect rem koolhaas this year . even if you do n't have time to visit the giardini and the national pavilions , these events outside the main programme are some fantastic cultural offerings , adding another level of meaning to visiting a city with such rich heritage . venice architecture biennale 2014 : 7.6 - 23.11.2014 © 2012 grand tour magazine . all rights reserved . | anish kapoor and ai weiwei are among artists exhibiting across venice |
venice <tsp> venice , italy ( cnn ) -- public transport in venice is like an endless sightseeing tour , and not only for the amount of tourists on the central vaporetto routes . the waterfront architecture is truly spectacular , from palladian churches to private palazzos . and now during the biennale contemporary artworks and installations are scattered around the city . venturing along the waterways leads to some unmissable exhibitions , where art and architecture blend into a beautiful dialogue . baroque influence close to the rialto market on the canal grande , an 18th century palazzo is home to fondazione prada , where all three floors are open to the public for the first time . during the biennale it 's hosting a show curated by germano celant , one of the leading figures of the 1960s anti-formal art movement arte povera . celant has filled the rooms with a theatrical show . from 16th century musical instruments , clocks and mechanical curiosities to modern installation pieces involving performers , art or sound explores both formal and conceptual ideas relating to music . you can witness the craft of historic pieces as well as works by key avant-garde artists from celant 's previous collaborations , such as john cage , nam june paik , michelangelo pistoletto and jannis kounellis . their radical rethinking of art and the abstract condition of sound resonates throughout the exhibition . the unique venetian baroque interiors add another level of interest to the show . it 's both raw and historical - unlike any other contemporary art space in the world - with ornaments , carvings and rich details . the prada foundation has a contract as a patron to rescue the building and bring the original frescoes and rare , fine materials back to life , without trying to modify it through characterless facelifts ' , celant explains . modernity takes over on the other side of the water , after the rialto bridge , there is the fondaco marcello , an exhibition space in a 15th century arms storehouse by the water front . here the biennale theme of modernity extends into a scientific narrative , looking at possible ways of existence on the antarctic continent , a subject in total contrast to the surrounding architectural heritage in venice . the antarctic pavilion , curated by nadim samman makes you think of lifestyle and tourism , as well as the ecological and political questions posed by those extreme conditions on the margins of civilization . further down towards san marco square , a giant composition of 1,179 stainless steel bikes has been neatly stacked on the canal side courtyard garden of the palazzo cavalli-franchetti near the accademia bridge . this art installation , titled forever ' by ai weiwei is part of the exhibition genius loci , brought to venice by the lisson gallery . the show continues inside the 16th century palace building with sculptures and installations by international artists including tony cragg , lee ufan , julian opie and joana vasconcelos . contemporary public art the rest is slightly more modest in scale than ai weiwei 's installation , but still spectacular examples of ideas addressed in contemporary public works . there is a sense of play with architecture and space , exploring the parallels between the two disciplines , such as anish kapoor 's work which deals with our spatial perceptions . this exhibition suggests that genius loci'the special spirit'can be found in the urban space through artworks , materials and forms ; a departure from the modernist obsession with functionality . a short hop on a vaporetto takes you across the lagoon from san marco to the island of san giorgio maggiore , which has become a site for displaying large public installations . this year a geometric sculpture entitled the sky over nine columns ' dominates the waterfront square next to palladio 's famous church . its surfaces are covered with golden glass mosaics , beautifully reflecting the venetian sun . the piece by heinz mack , who represented germany at the arts biennale in 1970 , was commissioned by the cini foundation . mack is known for monumental installations : my sculptures are objects of light in space ' mack said . behind the church , an exquisitely crafted pavilion has been erected in the garden of the stanze del vetro glass museum . the aquarium-like glass tea house mondrian is designed by japanese artist hiroshi sugimoto , best known for his minimalistic photography . sugimoto 's pavilion is the first in a series of commissions , supported by the cini foundation , which follows the model of the serpentine pavilion in london . installed inside a cedar wood fenced garden , the glass pavilion will also be the setting for a traditional tea ceremony , a performance which exemplifies the delicacy in japanese culture . all these shows run parallel to the architecture biennale , overseen by dutch architect rem koolhaas this year . even if you do n't have time to visit the giardini and the national pavilions , these events outside the main programme are some fantastic cultural offerings , adding another level of meaning to visiting a city with such rich heritage . venice architecture biennale 2014 : 7.6 - 23.11.2014 © 2012 grand tour magazine . all rights reserved . | venice comes alive as the biennale takes over the city |
anish kapoor <tsp> venice , italy ( cnn ) -- public transport in venice is like an endless sightseeing tour , and not only for the amount of tourists on the central vaporetto routes . the waterfront architecture is truly spectacular , from palladian churches to private palazzos . and now during the biennale contemporary artworks and installations are scattered around the city . venturing along the waterways leads to some unmissable exhibitions , where art and architecture blend into a beautiful dialogue . baroque influence close to the rialto market on the canal grande , an 18th century palazzo is home to fondazione prada , where all three floors are open to the public for the first time . during the biennale it 's hosting a show curated by germano celant , one of the leading figures of the 1960s anti-formal art movement arte povera . celant has filled the rooms with a theatrical show . from 16th century musical instruments , clocks and mechanical curiosities to modern installation pieces involving performers , art or sound explores both formal and conceptual ideas relating to music . you can witness the craft of historic pieces as well as works by key avant-garde artists from celant 's previous collaborations , such as john cage , nam june paik , michelangelo pistoletto and jannis kounellis . their radical rethinking of art and the abstract condition of sound resonates throughout the exhibition . the unique venetian baroque interiors add another level of interest to the show . it 's both raw and historical - unlike any other contemporary art space in the world - with ornaments , carvings and rich details . the prada foundation has a contract as a patron to rescue the building and bring the original frescoes and rare , fine materials back to life , without trying to modify it through characterless facelifts ' , celant explains . modernity takes over on the other side of the water , after the rialto bridge , there is the fondaco marcello , an exhibition space in a 15th century arms storehouse by the water front . here the biennale theme of modernity extends into a scientific narrative , looking at possible ways of existence on the antarctic continent , a subject in total contrast to the surrounding architectural heritage in venice . the antarctic pavilion , curated by nadim samman makes you think of lifestyle and tourism , as well as the ecological and political questions posed by those extreme conditions on the margins of civilization . further down towards san marco square , a giant composition of 1,179 stainless steel bikes has been neatly stacked on the canal side courtyard garden of the palazzo cavalli-franchetti near the accademia bridge . this art installation , titled forever ' by ai weiwei is part of the exhibition genius loci , brought to venice by the lisson gallery . the show continues inside the 16th century palace building with sculptures and installations by international artists including tony cragg , lee ufan , julian opie and joana vasconcelos . contemporary public art the rest is slightly more modest in scale than ai weiwei 's installation , but still spectacular examples of ideas addressed in contemporary public works . there is a sense of play with architecture and space , exploring the parallels between the two disciplines , such as anish kapoor 's work which deals with our spatial perceptions . this exhibition suggests that genius loci'the special spirit'can be found in the urban space through artworks , materials and forms ; a departure from the modernist obsession with functionality . a short hop on a vaporetto takes you across the lagoon from san marco to the island of san giorgio maggiore , which has become a site for displaying large public installations . this year a geometric sculpture entitled the sky over nine columns ' dominates the waterfront square next to palladio 's famous church . its surfaces are covered with golden glass mosaics , beautifully reflecting the venetian sun . the piece by heinz mack , who represented germany at the arts biennale in 1970 , was commissioned by the cini foundation . mack is known for monumental installations : my sculptures are objects of light in space ' mack said . behind the church , an exquisitely crafted pavilion has been erected in the garden of the stanze del vetro glass museum . the aquarium-like glass tea house mondrian is designed by japanese artist hiroshi sugimoto , best known for his minimalistic photography . sugimoto 's pavilion is the first in a series of commissions , supported by the cini foundation , which follows the model of the serpentine pavilion in london . installed inside a cedar wood fenced garden , the glass pavilion will also be the setting for a traditional tea ceremony , a performance which exemplifies the delicacy in japanese culture . all these shows run parallel to the architecture biennale , overseen by dutch architect rem koolhaas this year . even if you do n't have time to visit the giardini and the national pavilions , these events outside the main programme are some fantastic cultural offerings , adding another level of meaning to visiting a city with such rich heritage . venice architecture biennale 2014 : 7.6 - 23.11.2014 © 2012 grand tour magazine . all rights reserved . | anish kapoor and ai weiwei are among artists exhibiting across venice |
china <tsp> hong kong ( cnn ) -- borrowed place , borrowed time . that was the mantra in hong kong as the clock ticked down to the british colony being handed back to china in 1997 . and as the handover loomed , hong kongers were frantic to make money to get a passport before the communist mainland reclaimed the territory . they feared an end to the free-wheeling ways of capitalism where money brought power , prestige -- and if needed , an escape route . but there was a small , vocal minority who talked instead about the tail wagging the dog . far from being subsumed by china 's political system , hong kong would in fact lead it towards democracy . why ? because , if this handover worked , it could lure a much bigger prize in the form of taiwan . if democracy , prosperity and personal freedoms flourished in this territory , taiwan could be induced to rejoin china after its seminal split in 1949 . opinion : why beijing is courting trouble but events of the past week have been a watershed in hong kong 's political development . the ultimate goal of universal suffrage -- one person , one vote -- has been subverted . yes , there will be one person , one vote , but beijing has said they want to control who hong kong 's voters are allowed to vote for . china 's leadership has made it crystal clear that any form of democracy will only come attached to very powerful chinese characteristics . hong kong 's first chief executive , tung chee-hwa , who stepped down early after massive protests against his leadership , this week called beijing 's move towards democracy real and substantive . ' it 's hard to see how . if anything , beijing has slammed the door on a true democratic process , one that allows anyone to stand for election . hong kong 's pro-democracy politicians have said they will veto any proposal that does n't allow for full suffrage , leaving the special administrative region back at square one . muted reaction yet hong kong has hardly exploded in anger or frustration . in fact the reaction has been almost muted . occupy central with love and peace , a protest group committed to true universal suffrage , had threatened a campaign of bringing business in downtown hong kong to a standstill if china did n't allow for a more democratic process . in june , it conducted an unofficial referendum on the issue . nearly 800,000 people out of a population of seven million took part despite , or perhaps because of , repeated and sophisticated cyber-attacks and overt criticism from beijing . but the strategy of trying to win concessions from beijing failed . and in an extraordinary admission just after beijing made its ruling on sunday , a leader of the occupy movement , benny tai , in an interview with bloomberg , conceded support for their cause was sliding . the number of people joining us ( for a long-planned sit-in protest ) will not be as big as we expect , because of the very pragmatic thinking of hong kong people , ' he admitted . in many ways it comes back that same mindset in the run-up to the handover . pragmatism wins over idealism . before 1997 , the pragmatists were doing what they could to have a plan b -- a way of getting out of hong kong if they needed to -- or working hard to ingratiate themselves with beijing . game of'chicken' today they are apparently not prepared to take on beijing in an eyeball-to-eyeball standoff . as david zweig , a professor of political science at hong kong university of science and technology , said , if this was a game of chicken , the mainland has said :'we 'll drive straight through this'and occupy central has pulled aside and replied ,'we are n't willing to destroy hong kong .'' but it may not be over yet . hong kong street demonstrations have a habit of morphing into a general protest against a range of issues from politics to working conditions to environmental concerns . economics remain a powerful driving force . if the economy starts to fade , if unemployment starts to rise , it can become a catalyst for a much broader range of protesters . and neither beijing nor hong kong 's leadership can ill-afford to ignore them . | in 1997 hong kongers were frantic to get a passport before china reclaimed the territory |
chartier <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the academy of motion picture arts and sciences announced tuesday that hurt locker ' producer nicolas chartier will not be allowed to attend the march 7 awards show because of an e-mail that has been deemed in violation of the academy 's campaigning standards . chartier had recently disseminated an e-mail to certain academy voters and other film industry figures in which he solicited votes for his own picture and disparaged one of the other contending films , ' the academy said in a statement tuesday evening . according to the los angeles times , chartier 's e-mail asked the message recipients to spread the word about the iraq war movie so that the independent feature would win , and not a $ 500m film , ' which many have interpreted as a slight against james cameron 's box-office blockbuster avatar . ' to the academy , chartier 's appeal to voters and industry insiders crossed the line by casting a negative or derogatory light on a competing film , ' which , according to the academy 's statement , is against the organization 's rules . late monday , the academy decided that it would rescind only chartier 's invitation , stopping short ' of pulling the hurt locker ' out of the running altogether . if the film wins , remaining producers kathryn bigelow , mark boal and greg shapiro will accept the award . chartier would receive his oscar statuette later . | academy rescinded invitation to chartier because of e-mail campaign |
chartier <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the academy of motion picture arts and sciences announced tuesday that hurt locker ' producer nicolas chartier will not be allowed to attend the march 7 awards show because of an e-mail that has been deemed in violation of the academy 's campaigning standards . chartier had recently disseminated an e-mail to certain academy voters and other film industry figures in which he solicited votes for his own picture and disparaged one of the other contending films , ' the academy said in a statement tuesday evening . according to the los angeles times , chartier 's e-mail asked the message recipients to spread the word about the iraq war movie so that the independent feature would win , and not a $ 500m film , ' which many have interpreted as a slight against james cameron 's box-office blockbuster avatar . ' to the academy , chartier 's appeal to voters and industry insiders crossed the line by casting a negative or derogatory light on a competing film , ' which , according to the academy 's statement , is against the organization 's rules . late monday , the academy decided that it would rescind only chartier 's invitation , stopping short ' of pulling the hurt locker ' out of the running altogether . if the film wins , remaining producers kathryn bigelow , mark boal and greg shapiro will accept the award . chartier would receive his oscar statuette later . | if hurt locker ' wins best picture , chartier will receive statuette after march 7 |
chartier <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the academy of motion picture arts and sciences announced tuesday that hurt locker ' producer nicolas chartier will not be allowed to attend the march 7 awards show because of an e-mail that has been deemed in violation of the academy 's campaigning standards . chartier had recently disseminated an e-mail to certain academy voters and other film industry figures in which he solicited votes for his own picture and disparaged one of the other contending films , ' the academy said in a statement tuesday evening . according to the los angeles times , chartier 's e-mail asked the message recipients to spread the word about the iraq war movie so that the independent feature would win , and not a $ 500m film , ' which many have interpreted as a slight against james cameron 's box-office blockbuster avatar . ' to the academy , chartier 's appeal to voters and industry insiders crossed the line by casting a negative or derogatory light on a competing film , ' which , according to the academy 's statement , is against the organization 's rules . late monday , the academy decided that it would rescind only chartier 's invitation , stopping short ' of pulling the hurt locker ' out of the running altogether . if the film wins , remaining producers kathryn bigelow , mark boal and greg shapiro will accept the award . chartier would receive his oscar statuette later . | nicolas chartier wo n't be allowed to attend ceremony |
modi <tsp> ( cnn ) -- indian prime minister narendra modi has said al qaeda will fail if it seeks to spread its terror network into his country because muslims there will die for india . ' al qaeda announced plans this month to launch a new branch in the indian subcontinent , in a video message featuring al qaeda leader ayman al-zawahiri . al-zawahiri said that his group would seek support in the indian states of assam and gujarat , and in kashmir , the disputed region between india and pakistan -- and that he wants to free muslims from the oppression ' they face there . but in an exclusive interview with cnn 's fareed zakaria , modi insisted that any such efforts would not succeed . my understanding is that they are doing injustice towards the muslims of our country , ' he said . if anyone thinks indian muslims will dance to their tune , they are delusional . indian muslims will live for india . they will die for india . they will not want anything bad for india . ' asked why so few among india 's roughly 170 million muslims have joined al qaeda 's ranks , modi suggested the issue was one of a wider fight for principles , rather than a question of nationality . this is a crisis against humanity , not a crisis against one country or one race . so we have to frame this as a fight between humanity and inhumanity . nothing else . ' india , a predominantly hindu nation , has a 13 % muslim population , according to the country 's census . inter-religious relations have become tense before . in 2002 , gujarat was wracked with anti-muslim violence , in which more than 1,000 people , mostly muslims , were killed . most of the world 's muslims live in asia , with about 1 billion in the asia-pacific region and about 322 million in the middle east and north africa , according to the pew research center . besides assam , gujarat and kashmir , al-zawahiri also said in his message that he would seek to gain support for the vulnerable ' in myanmar and bangladesh . peter bergen , cnn 's national security analyst , called the video hyperventilation and posturing . ' it 's al-zawahiri 's obvious way of getting some of the limelight back , ' he said , as the islamic state in iraq and syria has moved front and center . cnn 's jason miks and madison park contributed to this report . | modi frames struggle against al qaeda as a fight between humanity and inhumanity ' |
modi <tsp> ( cnn ) -- indian prime minister narendra modi has said al qaeda will fail if it seeks to spread its terror network into his country because muslims there will die for india . ' al qaeda announced plans this month to launch a new branch in the indian subcontinent , in a video message featuring al qaeda leader ayman al-zawahiri . al-zawahiri said that his group would seek support in the indian states of assam and gujarat , and in kashmir , the disputed region between india and pakistan -- and that he wants to free muslims from the oppression ' they face there . but in an exclusive interview with cnn 's fareed zakaria , modi insisted that any such efforts would not succeed . my understanding is that they are doing injustice towards the muslims of our country , ' he said . if anyone thinks indian muslims will dance to their tune , they are delusional . indian muslims will live for india . they will die for india . they will not want anything bad for india . ' asked why so few among india 's roughly 170 million muslims have joined al qaeda 's ranks , modi suggested the issue was one of a wider fight for principles , rather than a question of nationality . this is a crisis against humanity , not a crisis against one country or one race . so we have to frame this as a fight between humanity and inhumanity . nothing else . ' india , a predominantly hindu nation , has a 13 % muslim population , according to the country 's census . inter-religious relations have become tense before . in 2002 , gujarat was wracked with anti-muslim violence , in which more than 1,000 people , mostly muslims , were killed . most of the world 's muslims live in asia , with about 1 billion in the asia-pacific region and about 322 million in the middle east and north africa , according to the pew research center . besides assam , gujarat and kashmir , al-zawahiri also said in his message that he would seek to gain support for the vulnerable ' in myanmar and bangladesh . peter bergen , cnn 's national security analyst , called the video hyperventilation and posturing . ' it 's al-zawahiri 's obvious way of getting some of the limelight back , ' he said , as the islamic state in iraq and syria has moved front and center . cnn 's jason miks and madison park contributed to this report . | indian prime minister narendra modi says al qaeda wo n't gain a foothold in india |
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